With four different cars in the top four places, plus championship leader Lando Norris starting down in 10th, the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix promises to be an intriguing race.
Formula 1 is using softer tyres in a bid to encourage more strategic variation in the race, which has been fairly predictable in the past. Will the change make a difference?
Here’s the key information for following today’s 50-lap grand prix.
Weather
More of the same is forecast for Sunday night in Jeddah. The warm but cooling temperatures will be much as they were in qualifying.
Start
Jeddah has one of the shortest runs to the first corner of any track on the calendar.
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Distance from pole position to first braking zone. Source: Mercedes
Last year Max Verstappen started from pole position, as he does again today. On that occasion he immediately moved to his left to keep Charles Leclerc, second, behind him.
This left Leclerc vulnerable to Sergio Perez, who started third, but the Red Bull driver wasn’t able to pass the Ferrari.
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Strategy
Last year drivers chose the following compounds to start the race on:
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Tyre compound |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull-Honda RBPT | Medium |
| 2 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | Medium |
| 3 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull-Honda RBPT | Medium |
| 4 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin-Mercedes | Medium |
| 5 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren-Mercedes | Medium |
| 6 | Lando Norris | McLaren-Mercedes | Medium |
| 7 | George Russell | Mercedes | Medium |
| 8 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | Medium |
| 9 | Yuki Tsunoda | RB-Honda RBPT | Medium |
| 10 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin-Mercedes | Medium |
| 11 | Oliver Bearman | Ferrari | Soft |
| 12 | Alexander Albon | Williams-Mercedes | Medium |
| 13 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas-Ferrari | Medium |
| 14 | Daniel Ricciardo | RB-Honda RBPT | Medium |
| 15 | Nico Hulkenberg | Haas-Ferrari | Medium |
| 16 | Valtteri Bottas | Sauber-Ferrari | Soft |
| 17 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine-Renault | Medium |
| 18 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine-Renault | Medium |
| 19 | Logan Sargeant | Williams-Mercedes | Medium |
| 20 | Zhou Guanyu | Sauber-Ferrari | Medium |
Formula 1’s official tyre supplier Pirelli has brought tyres which are one stage softer than last year. However drivers were able to run that medium (the equivalent of this year’s hard) for as many as 41 of the 50 laps. Therefore, even with the slightly hotter temperatures than last year, drivers are likely to be able to complete the race with a single pit stop again.
A pit stop costs around 15 seconds at Jeddah, which is less than at many other tracks. Each driver has the following tyres available for the grand prix:
| Tyres available for the race | Hard | Medium | Soft | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Driver | New | Used | New | Used | New | Used |
| Max Verstappen | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Oscar Piastri | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| George Russell | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Charles Leclerc | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Andrea Kimi Antonelli | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Carlos Sainz Jnr | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Lewis Hamilton | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Yuki Tsunoda | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Pierre Gasly | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Lando Norris | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Alexander Albon | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Liam Lawson | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Fernando Alonso | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Isack Hadjar | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Oliver Bearman | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Lance Stroll | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Jack Doohan | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Nico Hulkenberg | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Esteban Ocon | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Gabriel Bortoleto | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
NB. Qualifying order
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Overtaking
There have been no changes to the DRS zones from last year. Jeddah has three, clustered towards the end of the lap.
Speed trap
Pole winner Verstappen has one of the fastest cars in the speed trap. However the spread from fastest speed to lowest is not particularly large this weekend.
| P. | # | Driver | Car | Engine | Model | Max kph (mph) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Sauber | Ferrari | C45 | 339.3 (210.8) |
| 2 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | Honda RBPT | RB21 | 338.2 (210.1) |
| 3 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | Renault | A525 | 337.2 (209.5) |
| 4 | 5 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Sauber | Ferrari | C45 | 336.8 (209.3) |
| 5 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | Ferrari | SF-25 | 336.8 (209.3) |
| 6 | 7 | Jack Doohan | Alpine | Renault | A525 | 336.5 (209.1) |
| 7 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | Red Bull | Honda RBPT | RB21 | 336.5 (209.1) |
| 8 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | Ferrari | SF-25 | 336.4 (209.0) |
| 9 | 55 | Carlos Sainz Jnr | Williams | Mercedes | FW47 | 335.5 (208.5) |
| 10 | 6 | Isack Hadjar | Racing Bulls | Honda RBPT | 02 | 334.5 (207.8) |
| 11 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | Mercedes | W16 | 334.5 (207.8) |
| 12 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | Mercedes | AMR25 | 334.3 (207.7) |
| 13 | 23 | Alexander Albon | Williams | Mercedes | FW47 | 334.3 (207.7) |
| 14 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren | Mercedes | MCL39 | 334.3 (207.7) |
| 15 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | Mercedes | MCL39 | 333.4 (207.2) |
| 16 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Haas | Ferrari | VF-25 | 333.3 (207.1) |
| 17 | 12 | Andrea Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | Mercedes | W16 | 333.2 (207.0) |
| 18 | 87 | Oliver Bearman | Haas | Ferrari | VF-25 | 333.1 (207.0) |
| 19 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | Mercedes | AMR25 | 332.3 (206.5) |
| 20 | 30 | Liam Lawson | Racing Bulls | Honda RBPT | 02 | 331.6 (206.0) |
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Safety Cars
Due to the limited amount of run-off at several points around the circuit, interruptions are not uncommon at Jeddah.
However the track’s high-speed nature also means crashes can be serious enough to cause red flags. Any teams which suspect the race may be red-flagged could avoid pitting, in the hope they will be able to make their mandatory tyre change while the race is neutralised.
Several drivers took advantage of the opportunity to do that during the inaugural race. Lando Norris was among those who lost out as a result and described F1’s red flag regulations as the “worst rule ever invented.” Nevertheless it remains unchanged.
Grid
The grid for this year’s race is as follows. Any changes between now and the start of the race will be added here:
Over to you
Every race so far this year has been won from pole position. Will that change today?
Share your views on the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in the comments.
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