Ollie Bearman’s dream debut and another Red Bull front row at F1 Saudi Arabian GP

Remember what you were doing when you were 18?

It probably would have been a little different to what Olly Bearman did at the F1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on Saturday night.

Just over 24 hours after Carlos Sainz Jr. learned he would make his F1 debut after requiring an appendectomy due to appendicitis, Bearman not only started from 11th place, but also joined the team early in his first F1 race. The following message was communicated over the radio: Thoughts on his previous car:

“Dude, he’s so slow,” Bearman said of Nico Hulkenberg’s Haas in front of him.

Bearman eventually passed Hulkenberg and emerged on lap 20 thanks to a deft move to the inside while using DRS. The move moved him up to ninth and could have given the 18-year-old driver more points as the two drivers ahead of him still had to pit.

With 10 laps to go, Bearman was running seventh, followed by Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton, each driver having just been fitted with new soft tires. Will this young driver manage to hold off the two experienced drivers?

With 10 laps to go, he held a five-second advantage over Norris, with Hamilton just one second behind. The two appeared to be catching up to the Ferrari driver, gaining little time each lap.

“Will Norris catch us at this pace?” Bearman asked.

The team told them Norris was likely in range, but when Bearman pushed late, both drivers were on new soft tires, while Bearman was on an older set. Regardless, he maintained a solid gap over both Norris and Hamilton. difficult.

With five laps to go, Bearman had a lead of just over three seconds over Norris, but behind him there was a potential battle for eighth place between Norris and Hamilton. With Hamilton now within DRS of Norris, Ferrari told Bearman that Hamilton could maintain seventh place.

“We can do it,” was the message from the pit wall.

The battle between Hamilton and Norris began at the end of lap 46, when Norris was about 2.9 seconds behind Bearman. Bearman, the third-youngest driver in F1 history after Max Verstappen and Lance Stroll, and his compatriot were aiming to finish seventh in the F1 race.

Meanwhile, his father was watching in the garage, just as worried as the rest of us.

Eventually Bearman held on and crossed the line just outside DRS range in front of Norris.

It was a great result for Bearman, who set his personal best lap on lap 49.

“This guy is something special,” Jolyon Palmer said on the commentary box. F1TV. “It was a dream debut,” said Alex Jack, alongside Palmer.

With a dream debut, Bearman became one of the winners of the Saudi Grand Prix.

Here are the Saudi Grand Prix results and other winners and losers:

Winner – Red Bull

Red Bull’s upheaval off the track has been well documented.

But they were perfect on the track.

After securing a front row spot at the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix, Red Bull did it again, with Max Verstappen taking his ninth straight win since last season, with teammate Sergio Perez finishing second behind him.

“We’ve definitely made some progress,” Perez told David Coulthard after the race. “It was difficult at times, especially at the beginning…I think overall it was a great day for the team.”

It was a fitting end to a fantastic week of racing for Verstappen, who became the youngest driver in F1 history to reach 100 podiums.

“Overall I think it was a great weekend for the whole team,” Verstappen said. “I ran a good pace overall… overall it was very, very good.”

And with two one-two finishes this season, Red Bull remains in perfect form.

That is, on the track.

Winner – Carlos Sainz Jr.

Carlos Sainz Jr. was unable to race in Saturday’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix after being hospitalized with appendicitis and subsequent appendectomy at the start of the weekend.

But even if it was from a hospital bed, it didn’t prevent him from being one of the winners this weekend.

After Friday’s surgery, Sainz posted an incredible message on social media. Sainz called it a “smooth operation” after his nickname Smooth Operator, before thanking the doctors who treated him and Olly Bearman and the team who stepped in on his behalf. He praised both his mate Charles Leclerc.

But he wasn’t done yet. Because on the Saturday before the race, the Ferrari driver shared this photo with his father Carlos Sainz Sr. next to him.

After stating that the Sainz family is now 2-0 against appendicitis, the driver and father share a bedside photo of Sainz with his father when he underwent his own appendectomy. Reproduced.

Absolutely perfect content, 10/10, no notes.

But Sainz wasn’t finished. He quickly left his hospital bed and returned to the track to cheer on Bearman and Leclerc at the Saudi Grand Prix.

It is wonderful.

Of course, in the coming days the discussion will move to when Sainz will be able to return to the cockpit, but for now we’ll see how he approaches this situation and, frankly, this season with humor and grace. I would like to thank you for the progress made in medical science. These moments were made possible.

Loser – Lance Stroll

On lap seven, the narrow walls of the Jeddah Corniche circuit claimed its first casualty.

Lance Stroll, who was fighting in ninth place behind the points, got too close to the inside wall and clipped on the front left, sending him off the track and into the barrier at Turn 22. This violent collision ended his day. Thankfully, Stroll quickly reported that he was okay and was able to walk away from the damaged AMR24 on his own.

This moment immediately reminded me of Logan Sargent’s comments when speaking ahead of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on Wednesday. Speaking about how difficult it is to complete a solid lap while staying within track limits in an F1 car, Sargent said:

Especially when you’re on the backend [lap], trying to break through Q1 and always coming out on top. Please try to imagine. If you give yourself some time, being too safe could drop you two or three places. The tires would then overheat during the lap, causing the wind to pick up and change throughout the lap. Just a little slipstream of the car completely changed the way the corner looked. You know, I think it takes a lot more to get a lot done and make the most of it while keeping it within the white line than people realize. This is much more complex than simply “staying within the white line.”

In a sport where every millisecond counts, and every millimeter counts, there’s a fine line between completing a great lap and finishing within the barrier. Stroll is just the latest example.

Winner – Haas

Sometimes it’s hard to remember that F1 is also a team sport.

Haas gave us great memories on Saturday.

Kevin Magnussen received two 10-second penalties in the first half of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. One was an accident in which he “caused a collision” with Alexander Albon, and the other was because he went off the track to gain an advantage at the finish line. He passed Yuki Tsunoda.

However, Magnussen did not change his strategy or retire, instead holding on on track, leading the DRS train with many drivers behind him. reason? His teammate Nico Hulkenberg ran ahead of him and looked on to finish in the points.

What is Magnussen’s mission? Hold off the cars behind him as much as possible to ensure Hulkenberg returns to the fray in a position to score points when he completes the required pit stops.

Mission complete. Hulkenberg pitted and returned to the fray in 11th place, but there were several drivers ahead of him who still needed to pit. Among them was Sauber’s Zhou Guanyu, who was running 10th.

“Great teamwork,” Magnussen’s team said over the radio.

Chou finally had to pit in the final stages, and the team endured long pit stops for the second consecutive week. Last week, Valtteri Bottas suffered a problem with his front left tire, forcing him to make a nearly one-minute pit stop. This time, the right front of Zhou’s C44 supported him, and the Chinese driver returned to the fray in 18th place.

and Hulkenberg in 10th, the final point position.

The team paid tribute to Magnussen after the checkered flag.

It may only be one point, but it was earned mainly because Magnussen gave his all for the team.

Loser – Pierre Gasly

A tough start to the 2024 F1 season got even worse at Alpine before lights out on Saturday night.

On the formation lap Pierre Gasly reported a problem with his gearbox. He lumbered back to the starting grid and was able to start the race, but was immediately asked to pit the A524 on the first lap.

He did not return to the course and his night ended shortly after it began.

It will be recorded as a P20 for Gasly.

Alpine is currently in a race against time. They need to find the answer to her A524 problem and if points are not available, it is important to get as much data as possible over 50 laps.

The gearbox failure that Gasly suffered was the last thing they needed to avoid on Saturday.

Winner – Charles Leclerc

Ferrari finished on the podium for the second time this season.

In Bahrain, Sainz powered up to third place behind the Red Bull duo. This time Sainz was absent due to an appendectomy and Charles Leclerc gave Ferrari a comfortable podium finish. Leclerc also recorded the fastest lap on the final lap of the race, earning him an extra point.

“Overall the feeling was pretty good,” Leclerc told David Coulthard after the race. “Today we got maximum points and that was our goal so it was great.”

He also praised Bearman’s efforts.

“He did a great job,” Leclerc said. “To be seventh in his first race in F1 is very impressive…I think it’s only a matter of time before he’s here in F1.”

Loser – Sauber Nuts

For the second consecutive week, Sauber had its pit stop canceled due to trouble during a tire change.

Last week, it was the left front nut of Valtteri Bottas’ C44, and on Saturday night in Saudi Arabia, it was Chou Guanyu’s right front nut. It was unlikely that Bottas would finish in the points, but Zhou’s pit stop meant he had just given up 10th place on track, and even if it was far, he could fight back and earn a point. There was still a chance to get it.

However, it took a long time to put on the new right front tire, and any chance from outside was gone.

Absolutely nuts.