Max Verstappen won the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix from pole position, continuing Red Bull’s strong start to the Formula One season with a second one-two in as many races.
Mexican Sergio Perez finished second on Saturday beneath the Jeddah Corniche floodlights, 13.643 seconds behind his triple world champion teammate. Verstappen, who won 19 out of 22 races last year, had never won the first two races of a season before.
Charles Leclerc finished third for Ferrari, gaining a bonus point for best lap and his first podium of the season of the 26-year old Dutch Driver’s career.
It was also his 100th career podium, while Red Bull’s 115th win moved them ahead of Williams in fourth place on the all-time list. After Spaniard Carlos Sainz was sidelined by appendicitis, Oliver Bearman of the United Kingdom made his F1 racing debut as Ferrari’s youngest-ever rookie at 18 years and 305 days old, finishing seventh and being chosen Driver of the Day.
Oscar Piastri finished fourth for McLaren, ahead of Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin, George Russell of Mercedes, and Bearman. Two more Britons, Lando Norris and seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton, finished eighth and ninth for McLaren and Mercedes, respectively, with Nico Hulkenberg taking the final point for Haas.
The safety car was deployed on lap seven after Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll collided with the wall and crashed into the barriers at Turn 22.
The Canadian escaped unharmed as all but four drivers, including Norris and Hamilton, went into the pits.
Norris, who was later cleared of a suspected jumping start off the grid, led until the new Aston Martin Vantage safety car returned to the pits on lap nine, but Verstappen regained the lead by lap 13 and pulled away. Perez received a five-second penalty for a dangerous release from his first pitstop, while Haas’ Kevin Magnussen received a 10-second penalty for instigating a collision with Williams’ Alex Albon.