Rand Norris and Oscar Piastri dominated the timing sheet in the final practice session ahead of the Formula 1 Saudi Arabia Grand Prix, with Norris finishing 0.024 seconds ahead of his teammate, with George Russell in particular over a sixth in P3.
However, those lap times actually count immediately.
Today is the qualifying day at the Jeddah Cornish Circuit, with a season-high 27 corners set to challenge the drivers in more than an hour of qualifying, and the Grand Prix itself on Sunday will start the front in advance, unless there is a final chaos.
McLaren has been strong again for a week, but a similar scenario unfolded in Suzuka just a few weeks ago, with Max Verstappen taking pole position on Saturday and shocking the McLaren duo by winning the Japanese Grand Prix ahead of Norris and Piastri on Sunday. Can Verstappen bring another Shocker, or will this be a papaya along the Red Sea on Saturday?
We’ll be covering the qualifying rounds live so we’ll come back soon and often!
Saudi Arabia’s Grand Prix Q3
- It’s Verstappen’s Day! The Red Bull driver pinches the piercing line at just 0.010 to position the pole.
- Russell will be on P1 for more than 10 minutes than Verstappen!
- Russell is purple throughout sector 1. Can Mercedes drivers be shocked?
- Verstappen is at the tentative pole with an incredibly slim margin.
How slim? Just 0.001 seconds away from Piastri.
- F1TV analysts should note that the medical “light” is not caused by Norris’ crash. This means that instead of visiting a medical tent to check out, he goes straight to the media pen for a post-qualified obligation.
This is a good opportunity to explain how everything works. All 20 drivers must participate in media duties after each qualification or race session. All 20 people need to talk to the owner of each television rights office that is present in the truck. This creates a humorous situation in that area of the media pen as the driver speaks to each outlet and waits for their turn to answer the same question.
The top three finishers then head to the FIA press conference, while the other 17 have to talk to the written media.
This process begins immediately after the driver session has ended. For example, when Lewis Hamilton crashed from the US Grand Prix on Lap 2 last season, he attended a media session where he answered questions within 20 minutes. That’s how I was able to chat with him after that moment.
So that’s what we’re waiting for Norris now for Q3 to finish.
- Q3 resumed, with nine drivers left in the fight for pole positions.
- Q3 will resume in 1 minute.
- “This is not a friend’s show, it’s show business,” says David Coulthard, who is zooming in on Piastri, waiting for the camera to return to the track.
Norris’ crash shifts advantage in the driver’s championship race. Piastri appeared to move to the driver’s seat in that race after his victory in Bahrain. And depending on how the weekend unfolded, he was able to get a big lead on Monday.
- The clock will be suspended in the third quarter with 8:32 left. The Piastry is the only driver with a 1:27.560 benchmark and has set the time.
- In the replay, Norris spins around turn 4 before sliding down the racing line onto the wall.
- “It’s okay” is a message from Norris.
- Russell is radioed to “check the floor” during his first push lap. Norris is on the wall, so there is a red flag.
- Piastri was the first driver in the third quarter truck, followed by the Mercedes duo of Russell and Antonelli.
- The green light is in Jeddah and there is a 12 minute period to determine the position of the pole.
- Speaking in Mediapen, Nikohulkenberg talks about “fine margins,” a fixture for F1.
Saudi Arabia’s Grand Prix Q2
- The Zonodah passes through and comes across line P7 at the end of the second quarter. Hamilton finishes on P10 and moves Albon just 0.007 seconds ahead on P11.
Albon, Lawson, Alonso, Hadjar and Bearman are five drivers who were eliminated in the second quarter.
- Guthrie jumps to P8. This should be suitable for Q3.
- Antoneri wrap is suitable for P5. Sainz wraps are suitable for P6. This will bubble the Hamilton and the Horndae, as they sit on P9 and P10 respectively.
- It was under three minutes in the second quarter and the final push-lap set began. Mercedes Dryer Kimi Antoneri has just begun her final push-lap, currently sitting on the P10.
- Albon is out of the drop zone and he completes a strong lap with a new set of soft tires that will slam him against the P6 and drop Guthrie into the drop zone.
- The bottom five in the second quarter are Albon, Bearman, Hadjar, Fernando Alonso and Lawson.
- Norris pips Verstappen and took the P1 in just 0.048 seconds from the Red Bull driver. Verstappen was the strongest in Sector 1, but Norris was ahead in both Sector 2 and Sector 3.
- Piastri’s first lap has him on P1 at 1:27.690. However, Verstappen was purple throughout the first sector, and NIP Piastri at 0.161 seconds.
- Q2 begins and Albon is the first driver on the truck.
- Despite Lance sitting on a P16 for a walk, Aston Martin keeps him in the car in case the driver before him removes the time exceeding the truck limit.
Saudi Arabia’s Grand Prix Q1
- Q1 is nearing the end, and the drivers removed are: Lance Stroll, Jacques Douhan, Nico Hulkenberg, Esteban Ocon and Gabriel Boltreto.
- Guthrie flies to P9 and Bareman dives into P10. Hamilton is currently on the push lap on the P15 but should reach Q2.
- Meanwhile, in front of the field, Verstappen left P1 0.027 seconds before Norris.
- Doohan is currently in a tremendous push lap. It was three-thirty times more than Bareman through Sector 1 and nearly two-half times more than Bareman (now on P15) through Sector 2.
- Less than three minutes in the drop zone, there are Jacques Doohan, Liam Lawson, Pierre Guthrie, Esteban Ocon and Gabriel Boltreto.
- Alex Albon may have put the Rockets in the P4 and hit the wall along the way. Thunder from Williams Driver.
- Hamilton breaks out of the drop zone with a lap that pushes him into P10. But he’s never safe for the second quarter as the track continues to evolve.
- Isack Hadjar polished the wall at the right rear at the exit of Turn 27, but his VCARB02 appears to be OK.
- The first quarter was under eight minutes, with the five drivers in the drop zone being Liam Lawson, Pierre Guthrie, Lewis Hamilton, Esteban Ocon and Gabriel Boltreto.
- Piastri’s first push lap puts him on the top of the table, but only 0.007 seconds ahead of Norris.
- Verstappen’s lap comes just behind Norris, 0.122 seconds behind. The Red Bull Driver is on the P2.
- Verstappen’s first push lap is in progress. He was off Norris’ pace in both Sector 1 and Sector 2.
- Norris turns purple in both sectors 1 and 2, and his first push lap goes to 1:28.026.
- Esteban Ocon was the first driver to leave Pit Lane, followed by Haas’s teammate Oliver Baerman. Ocon will be the first driver to deposit time laps in the bank.
Bearman also has a kind of anniversary as he made his Formula One debut in Saudi Arabia before the season and drives in place of sick Carlos Sainz Jr. at Ferrari. Bareman gave a strong performance and finished in seventh place.
- The Sauber duo of Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Boltret are one of the first drivers to leave the pit when trying out several trucks.
- The green light comes out at the Jeddah Cornish Circuit. For 18 minutes, find 15 drivers and proceed to Q2, eliminating the bottom 5.
Prequalified Notes
- Alex Brundle and Chris Medland both pick Piastri on the pole, while Laura Winter goes with Norris.
As for me, I forced Norris to perform with me after last week’s disappointment.
- Horner: “I think McLarens is out of reach at this temperature.”
- Christian Horner stops at F1TV and pours cold water again on rumors that Max Verstappen is leaving Red Bull. “That’s really what it is, noise.”
- F1TV’s Chris Medland notes Williams has enjoyed a strong week so far, and expects both Alex Albon and Carlos Sis Jr. to move on to the third quarter.
- Alex Brandle at the F1TV prequalification show: “McLaren is the one who loses…”
- Waiting for F1 qualifying, Arvid Lindblad won the F2 sprint race after a five-second penalty was handed over to Richard Verschoor. Promotion to victory made the 17-year-old the youngest race winner in F2 history. He was born in 2007. So… because I certainly would.
