Saudi Arabia Grand Prix results: Sergio Perez leads Red Bull domination after incredible Max Verstappen recovery, Oscar Piastri suffers another disaster
Sergio Perez has won his fifth career race and beat his fast Red Bull teammate Max Verstappen at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in Jeddah.
The Mexican once again showed his skills on the road courses, with two of his other victories coming on the roads in Monte Carlo and Singapore.
Verstappen put in an incredible performance to finish second after starting from 15th on the grid after a nightmare qualifying process.
Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso crossed the line in third but was relegated to fourth place after two rule violations cost him 15 seconds.
Mercedes’ George Russell was third while his teammate Lewis Hamilton was fifth.
Ferrari drivers Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc finished sixth and seventh.
Australia’s Oscar Piastri survived another disastrous race to finish 15th after starting from 8th on the grid.
The talent was forced to pit on the first lap after his wing was hit by Alpine’s Pierre Gasly.
On the positive side, Piastri finished ahead of McLaren teammate Lando Norris, who crossed in 17th.
Results of the Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix
1st: Sergio Perez (Red Bull)
2nd: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
3rd: George Russell (Mercedes)
4th place: Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
5th: Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
6th: Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)
7th: Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
8th: Esteban Ocon (Alpine)
9th: Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
10′: Kevin Magnussen (Haas)
11th: Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri)
12.: Nico Hulkenberg (Haas)
13th: Zhou Guanyu (Alfa Romeo)
14′: Nyck De Vries (AlphaTauri)
15th: Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
16th: Logan Sargeant (Williams)
17′: Lando Norris (McLaren)
18′: Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo)
DNF: Alexander Albon (Williams)
DNF: Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
MORE: F1 2023 calendar: full track list and schedule
Oscar Piastri’s next F1 race and results
Piastri finished for the first time in F1 at the Saudi event, finishing two places ahead of McLaren teammate Lando Norris.
The next race for the Australian is his home race at the Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne.
The start of the race is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. AEDT At Sunday April 2nd.
| Grand Prix | Qualifying Result | finish the race |
| Bahrain | 18 | DNF |
| Saudi Arabia | 9 | 15 |
| Melbourne | – | – |
Highlights and career of Oscar Piastri
Piastri began his racing career in 2011 as a go-karter.
The Melbourne-born racer worked his way up through divisions in Australia and Europe, finishing third in the 2015 Australian Karting Championship.
The next year he switched away from karting and secured a place in the UAE Formula 4 Championship.
Piastri then moved to the UK to compete in the British Formula 4 Championship where he finished second in 2017.
The Australian’s first major race win came in 2019 when he emerged victorious after the Formula Renault Eurocup season.
He moved up to Formula 3 in 2020, followed by a move to Formula 2 in 2021. Impressively, he won both championships.
Why did Oscar Piastri leave Alpine for McLaren?
Before joining McLaren, Piastri was a member of Alpine’s Driver Academy.
The young Australian was selected as Renault’s own team’s reserve driver for the 2022 season and was heavily backed to fill the 2023 seat of outgoing Fernando Alonso.
In August last year, Piastri was initially announced as an Alpine driver, but he publicly denied the matter on social media.
“I understand that without my consent, Alpine F1 issued a press release this afternoon that I will be driving for them next year,” Piastri wrote.
“That’s wrong and I haven’t signed a contract with Alpine for 2023. I won’t be driving for Alpine next year.”
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Piastri was then announced as a McLaren driver, leading to Alpine taking the matter to the Contract Recognition Board, arguing that they already had a valid contract.
However, it was understood McLaren had struck a legal deal with Piastri, locking him up for 2023.
Daniel Ricciardo mutually agreed to cut his three-year deal with McLaren amid the debacle.
Piastri explained his decision to leave Alpine to Formula1.com.
“I was free to choose my destiny – and I felt McLaren was a great opportunity,” he said.
“They were very straightforward and very interested and excited to have me.
“To be perfectly honest, there was some ambiguity about my future with the Alpine team.”
What is Daniel Ricciardo doing this season?
Despite being replaced at McLaren and not securing a place on the 2023 grid, Ricciardo will remain involved in F1 this season.
The Australian has returned to his former team Red Bull as the third driver.
His role is flexible, but the main tasks include testing, simulator work and commercial activities.
This will likely make him the face of the team when the full-time drivers – Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez – are unavailable for certain promotional events.
Ricciardo drove for Red Bull from 2014 to 2018 and in that time had seven wins.