Tonight, the race is back on at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. Max Verstappen has pulled off a remarkable feat by defeating the McLarens and will start the race from pole position. For Oscar Piastri, everything is still possible as he starts right behind the Dutchman. The third starting slot is reserved for George Russell, who has been performing remarkably consistently this season. Below, you can find the full starting lineup and the most notable qualifying highlights to keep in mind.
Max Verstappen has caused a huge sensation by securing pole position for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, just like in Suzuka, in the RB21. He topped the timesheet in Q1, came second just behind Lando Norris in Q2, and was 1 hundredth of a second faster than Oscar Piastri in Q3. McLaren dominated the free practice sessions, but as the notably satisfied Dutchman said after qualifying, “We made some good adjustments to the car leading up to qualifying. The car really came to life.”
This promises to be exciting, but Verstappen’s biggest threat will likely come from Piastri. The McLaren driver starts behind him on the first row and is in good form. With his victory in the Bahrain Grand Prix, the Australian is so far the only driver to have won twice this season. In the first race of the year, his home race no less, a podium finish slipped through his fingers. He has since overtaken Verstappen in the World Championship standings and teammate Lando Norris is feeling the heat.
While most of the attention this season is on the battle between the two McLaren drivers and Verstappen, George Russell is emerging as an outsider for the title amidst all the commotion. The Mercedes driver qualified third. After three podium finishes in the first four races, he might be secretly hoping for more. The chance of a victory is there at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit. With an average speed of around 250 kilometers per hour and no less than 27 turns, including some blind ones, the race often guarantees safety cars and the ensuing chaos.
Catch-Up Race
Lando Norris, the current leader in the World Championship standings, is facing a catch-up race. Things went terribly wrong coming out of turn 5 on the world’s fastest street circuit. The McLaren driver crashed in his first run in Q3, which means he will start the race in tenth place. Speaking to F1.com, the downcast Brit said, “I’m disappointing myself now, another setback. I have to take this hit. Apologies to the team, to the engineers, and we’ll try to make the best of it on Sunday.”
Boost
A boost for Carlos Sainz: for the second time in a row, the Spaniard qualified above his teammate Alexander Albon, who finished eleventh. Sainz will start from the sixth position, his best qualifying result since his move to Williams. In five races, he reached Q3 three times, but his only World Championship point so far was earned in the Grand Prix of China. Sainz will be keen to convert his strong qualification into a good result, hoping to catch up with Albon, who is currently out of reach in the standings with 18 points.
Below is the full starting lineup for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, which starts tonight at 17:00 UTC.
