Saudi Arabian GP: Max Verstappen leads Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez to Jeddah practice high
Max Verstappen dominated final practice, finishing 0.6 seconds ahead of Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez. Fernando with his Alonso kept his 3rd place and Aston with his Martin best of the rest. Watch Saudi Grand Prix Qualifying Live on Sky Sports F1 Saturday at 4pm
Last updated: 18/03/23 2:51pm
Max Verstappen leads all three practice sessions at the Saudi Grand Prix
Max Verstappen led team-mate Sergio Perez to a practice treble at the Saudi Grand Prix, while Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso remained Red Bull’s closest challenger.
The reigning world champion clocked a 1:28.485 to finish more than half a second ahead of Perez, while Alonso maintained his dominant form, less than a second ahead of the third-placed Dutchman.
Red Bull have established themselves as the frontrunners in both Saturday’s late qualifying and Sunday’s race, but the battle behind them covers Alonso and the 12 cars finishing behind him by just half a second. It promises to be thrilling just by doing it.
Lance Stroll underscored Aston Martin’s strength by entering fourth behind Alonso, while Lewis Hamilton improved on Friday to finish fifth for Mercedes.
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Verstappen missed Lando Norris, who escaped a mistake in third place at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
Charles Leclerc, who will be penalized ten places on the grid for Sunday’s race, was sixth, but Ferrari did little to allay reliability concerns. Weekends are below full capacity.
The late afternoon session provides an imperfect indication of how qualifying will change under the lights later on Saturday, but the fact that track temperatures have dropped in thick cloud cover , making the conditions more representative.
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Formula 1 street racing is back! Watch the Saudi Grand Prix live this weekend on Sky Sports F1. Saturday’s qualifying and Sunday’s race will be broadcast live at 5pm. get sky sports