F1 results

Sergio Perez converted pole position into victory at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix as team mate Max Verstappen recovered from P15 to make it successive ...

Alonso took the lead into Turn 1 but a subsequent time penalty for lining up outside his grid box, coupled with the relentless pace of the Red Bulls, meant he had to settle for third place. “The team did a fantastic job. Mercedes and Ferrari had no answers for Red Bull’s pace as they distantly followed in two-by-two formation, Russell getting the better of team mate Lewis Hamilton, and Carlos Sainz leading Charles Leclerc home. we really did a job in the first stint, but that Safety Car again tried to take the victory from us in Jeddah – but not this time! I don’t know what to do.” Sergio Perez converted pole position into victory at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix as team mate Max Verstappen recovered from P15 to make it successive one-two finishes for Red Bull. That Safety Car… In the meantime, Perez found another level of pace to respond to Verstappen’s charge and stabilise the lead gap at just over five seconds, with a similar margin back to Alonso in third, followed by the Mercedes cars, the Ferraris and the Alpines. Ferrari duo Sainz and Leclerc sandwiched the Mercedes of Hamilton, as Tsunoda – another to benefit from the timing of the Safety Car – Ocon and Gasly rounded out the points-paying positions. That strategic move paid off for Ferrari when Sainz pitted on Lap 16, and Leclerc a lap later, with both drivers getting the jump on Stroll as they rejoined the action – the Canadian’s evening then ending dramatically when he was told to stop his car on track. When the grid formed up and the lights went out – with most drivers opting for medium tyres – Alonso sent the crowd wild as he bolted off the line to snatch the lead from Perez into Turn 1, with Russell slotting into P3 ahead of Stroll and Sainz. Perez overcame an attack from Alonso at the start, a nervy Safety Car period and Verstappen’s charge from the midfield to make up for the potential win he lost at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit a year ago – kick-starting his championship hopes in the process.

Sergio Perez won the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, leading home a Red Bull 1-2 ahead of a charging Max Verstappen. Charles Bradley.

[PlusPlusFormula 1Saudi Arabian GP ](/f1/news/why-mercedes-is-fronting-up-to-its-f1-mistakes-too-much/10443144/) [PlusPlusFormula 1Saudi Arabian GP ](/f1/news/how-the-f1-driver-expression-saga-continues-to-have-a-lineker-like-problem/10443530/) [PlusPlusFormula 1Saudi Arabian GP ](/f1/news/testing-times-for-vasseur-but-the-true-challenge-at-ferrari-is-about-to-come/10443879/) Russell wasn’t in the mood to give up fourth to Hamilton, despite their tyre difference, and the Ferraris didn’t have much pace on the hards and proved to be no threat from behind. Hamilton used his fresh mediums to outdrag Sainz from the exit of Turn 1 to pick up fifth. Leclerc pitted on lap 17, allowing Verstappen free passage to fourth, and rejoined ahead of Stroll too, who’d struggled to get back up to speed. [Lewis Hamilton](https://www.autosport.com/driver/lewis-hamilton/829181/), the only driver in the top 10 to start on hard tyres, dropped to seventh in his Mercedes. Sainz pitted two laps later, also taking hards but overcutting Stroll. Verstappen jumped to sixth as he DRS-ed past Ocon and Stroll pitted on lap 14. Verstappen DRS-ed past Hamilton on lap 12 to take eighth, two seconds behind Leclerc, who then put Verstappen gained two spots on the opening lap, aided by [Oscar Piastri](https://www.autosport.com/driver/oscar-piastri/869530/) needing a new front wing on his [McLaren](https://www.autosport.com/team/mclaren/36473/) after a first corner clash with an [Alpine](https://www.autosport.com/team/alpine/39174/). He quickly picked off those in front to sit behind Perez by half distance.

Red Bull Racing maintained its impressive start to the 2023 Formula 1 season in Saudi Arabia – though this time it was Sergio Perez who led home World ...

“We were able to have a good race, get a good start, manage the tires well – especially on the hard compound when I was on older tires than Tsunoda and actually had less degradation. That we have a weakness in the race, that we need to wait for developments to come to see if we can improve that weakness.” “It was a bit worse in the race than we were hoping for, we struggled in the dirty air too much. I was then able to get past him at the end, and we managed to get a point.” McLaren suffered another dismal race in Saudi Arabia – from a race that had initial promise on one side of the garage. It later emerged that both Race Control and the FIA’s Remote Operations Centre had initially given Alonso the all-clear but was then prodded on the last lap – likely by a rival team that would benefit – to take another look at the situation. “The last stint on the Hard [tires] proves that we are not where we want to be,” said Sainz. But it is a little bit sad for the FIA yes.” “So I thought that communication was the same to Max. But shortly after third-placed Alonso celebrated the 100th podium of his career he was hit with a 10-second time drop due to the original penalty being incorrectly served. Red Bull’s pace advantage around the Jeddah Corniche Circuit was such that he was able to breeze past Fernando Alonso – having lost out on the opening lap – and from there he opened and preserved a buffer to his closest challengers. Verstappen holds a slender one-point buffer over Perez in the championship on account of setting the race’s fastest lap.

Nat. Team, Time. 1, Sergio Perez, MEX, Oracle Red Bull Racing, 50 Laps. 2, Max Verstappen, NED, Oracle Red Bull Racing, 5.355s.

McLaren F1 Team MoneyGram Haas F1 Team BWT Alpine F1 Team