The only real question of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix was: Can Max Verstappen's one-lap, blistering pace be extended to the entire race, or will the balance tip towards the more stable Oscar Piastri in the longer stages?
Max Verstappen got off to a great start, but Oscar Piastri did the same, and since these are two equally hard-headed drivers, it was obvious that they would not get to the first corner without any problems. And so it happened, Verstappen overtook Piastri, who was in position, by a hair's breadth, by cutting the chicane, illegally. By the time these frames were rolling, the safety car had already arrived, Pierre Gasly put himself and Yuki Tsunoda into the wall. Neither the Frenchman nor the Japanese could continue the race, while several others took advantage of the opportunity to switch to hard compounds.
After the restart, which was easily brought about by Red Bull, Verstappen and his team were faced with a serious dilemma: should they give Piastri the position back or risk the penalty? In the end, they decided on the latter for tactical reasons, but they didn't take it too seriously. During the first "real" tire changes, RB received their five-second penalty, during which Piastri took the lead. What happened in the field in the meantime? Apart from Charles Leclerc's long stage, there was nothing really worthwhile, but it was an experience to watch. With brilliant tire management and positioning, the Scuderia Ferrari driver was already threatening the podium places by the last third of the race, and even overtook George Russell with a beautiful overtake. In addition to him, Isaac Hadjar and the two Williams performed above average, all three of them moving in the massive points-scoring zone throughout. There was little action left in the final laps, one of which was the catch-up of Lando Norris, who had been struggling throughout the race, who improved six positions and eventually advanced all the way to fourth place.
But he couldn't get involved in the big game, because the race was won by Oscar Piastri, who now leads the world championship with the other McLaren. Behind him, Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc celebrated, there was something for everyone, they all brought something extra to the table on this day.
Photo: Planet F1/ AP Photo
