All that is left is the fight for the checkered flag.
As he has already done this season, Max Verstappen surprised everyone by snatching pole position for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, finishing 0.010 seconds ahead of Oscar Piastri. But as Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner noted after qualifying, Verstappen is going to have his hands full when the lights go out later today.
“But what we’ve seen this weekend, the McLaren is very, very quick, particularly in race trim. So I think we’re going to have a hell of a fight on our hands to try to keep Oscar behind us. But we’re starting in the best possible position, so great to be going into it on pole,” said Horner when speaking with Sky Sports F1 after the session.
“Honestly, I did not believe that was possible going into that session. But it just shows, you never give up. We’ve got a great team, you keep fighting. You keep chasing the performance and then Max, he’ll go and deliver you that last ounce of performance.”
Whether Verstappen can indeed hold off Piastri is one of the major talking points heading into Sunday at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
A fascinating fight at the front
So far, this week has looked rather similar to the Japanese Grand Prix a few short weeks ago. While the McLaren duo of Lando Norris and Piastri entered Saturday as favorites for pole position, it was Verstappen who snatched P1 from the Papaya pair, holding onto that spot during the race itself.
A race that at times seemed more like a parade than a Grand Prix, given the lack of overtaking.
While passing comes at a premium around the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, it is not impossible. Three DRS zones and 27 corners do combine to afford drivers chances at making up some ground on the track. While Verstappen has the advantage off the line, the run into left-handed Turn 1 will give Piastri a chance to grab the lead. But if the Australian driver cannot catch Verstappen off the start, the pace of the MCL39 should give him more chances.
And if Verstappen and Piastri get to tangling, that could open the door for George Russell, who starts third?
What about the other drivers at the front?
Could someone outside the top three make a run at the checkered flag?
Charles Leclerc starts fourth, alongside Russell on the second row. But the Ferrari driver did not sound too confidence of his chances to fight forward on Sunday. Speaking with the official F1 channel after qualifying, Leclerc downplayed his chances, and did not hide his “disappointment.”
“It’s mixed feelings,” said the Ferrari driver. “Yes I’m happy about my job, but I’m disappointed with [the result]. Fighting for P4 is not what I want and not what makes me happy, so for now I’m just disappointed.”
As for his teammate, Lewis Hamilton sounded a bit more upbeat after qualifying seventh, and relayed some optimism heading into Sunday.
“I wouldn’t say I’m satisfied, but I’m happier than I was yesterday, and also through every practice session I was 12th or 13th,” said Norris to Sky Sports F1. “I just wasn’t feeling good with the car beneath me, it really wasn’t coming easy at all, so to just have got into Q3, it doesn’t matter how close it is, I’m grateful to have got through to Q3. P7 is okay, it’s better than my last Qualifying and so I’ve still got work to do to gel with this car.
“We didn’t really do a long run in practice, but this is I think a track where I think there is some overtaking, so [I’m] looking forwards.”
A driver to keep an eye on is Kimi Antonelli, who will start fifth. Although in his mind, P4 was certainly on the table.
“That was a very intense Qualifying,” said Antonelli in the team’s post-qualifying report. “The session as a whole went well, and I continued to build my speed. I had a big snap on my first lap in Q1 and had to burn a second set of new tires to get through to Q2. That wasn’t ideal but we still made it through to Q3 and, with the red flag, it all came down to the final effort anyway. I need to rewatch my lap to see exactly what happened, but I had a moment in the first sector that cost me a few tenths. That was a shame as the rest of the lap was strong and I think we could have taken P4.”
The confidence is certainly building in his mind, which could make him a dark horse on Sunday.
“I’m feeling more and more confident each and every weekend. This track is such a big test as you need lots of confidence and to get really close to the walls through the high-speed corners,” added Antonelli. “Step-by-step, and the more experience I’m getting, I feel like I’m starting to put it all together with more consistency. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves though and see what we can do tomorrow.
“It will be a long race and hopefully we can bring home some solid points for the team.”
Can Lando Norris recover, again?
For the second Sunday in a row, Lando Norris faces the prospects of a recovery drive.
Last Sunday in Bahrain Norris started sixth. He got out to a tremendous start, picking up several spots shortly after the lights went out to creep up to P3, but he was then cited for a false start, which required him to serve a five-second penalty.
He ultimately finished third, which one might consider a strong recovery drive given where he started. But the false start penalty might have cost him a chance at gaining even more ground on the track, and in the standings.
Now he’ll need to pick up even more ground in Saudi Arabia, as his crash in Q3 has him slotted tenth on the grid. He will have some chances to pick up spots, and there could always be intervention in the form of a Safety Car or two, but McLaren might need to roll the strategy dice with Norris if they are going to maximize his results on Sunday.
Advantage, Williams?
As pointed out heading into this week, the midfield fight is fascinating. Only 14 points separate Haas in P5 to Sauber in P10 in the Constructors’ Championship Standings:
Haas: 20 points
Williams: 19 points
Aston Martin: 10 points
VCARB: 7 points
Alpine: 6 points
Sauber: 6 points
Alpine has the tiebreaker advantage over Sauber thanks to Pierre Gasly’s seventh-place result last week in Bahrain, the best finish from either team this season.
Thanks to qualifying results on Saturday, one might think Williams has the advantage. Carlos Sainz Jr. will start in P6, his best qualifying result of the season. Add in Alex Albon starting in P11, and Williams has a great chance at a double-points result.
But Sainz is not the only midfield driver starting inside the top ten. Gasly has a solid chance at another big result of his own, as he will be in ninth when the lights go out.
Then there is the Visa Cash App Racing Bulls duo of Liam Lawson and Isack Hadjar, who start P12 and P14, respectively. Can they work forward based on pace and strategy?
Williams might have the midfield advantage when the lights go out on Sunday, but anything can happen on race day.
Especially because of …
The chaos factor
Yes, the chaos factor.
Jeddah Corniche Circuit is one of the fastest street circuits in the world, and a track that punishes mistakes. 27 corners and looming walls can turn a glory lap into disaster in the blink of an eye, which means the teams are preparing for intervention in the form of a Safety Car.
Since its inception in 2021, every Saudi Arabian Grand Prix has seen at least one Safety Car. That was the case last year when Lance Stroll’s crash on Lap 7 brought out the Safety Car and saw the bulk of the field dive into the pits to make their mandatory tire changes.
But the inaugural Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in 2021 saw not only a Safety Car but two red flags and four Virtual Safety Car periods.
The chaos factor could be high today, and the teams that handle the unexpected the best could reign supreme.