Round Five of the 2025 F1 season returned to Jeddah for the Saudi Arabian GP.<\/p>\n
The 2025 Saudi Arabian GP delivered drama from lights out to the chequered flag, with Oscar Piastri taking victory in a race marked by bold overtakes, first-lap chaos, and a penalty that may very well have changed the course of the Championship.<\/p>\n
Pierre Gasly surprised in FP1<\/a> of the 2025 Saudi Arabian GP weekend, topping the timesheets with a rapid 1:29.239 in hot and humid conditions. <\/span>The Alpine driver edged out Lando Norris<\/a> by just seven-thousandths of a second, with Charles Leclerc<\/a> a further six-hundredths adrift in third. <\/span><\/p>\n The hour-long session began at 16:30 local time, with Esteban Ocon leading the field onto the Jeddah Corniche Circuit<\/a>. Most drivers opted for medium tyres initially. <\/span><\/p>\n However, FP1 was without drama. Lewis Hamilton<\/a> and Gasly had close shaves with the unforgiving street circuit barriers. <\/span><\/p>\n Oscar Piastri also reported a drink leak in his helmet and later made light contact with the wall, prompting a car check. <\/span><\/p>\n Elsewhere, Ollie Bearman locked up his Haas, while Isack Hadjar\u2019s soft-tyre attempt was hindered by traffic. <\/span><\/p>\n George Russell briefly held the top spot on the mediums before soft tyre runs reshuffled the order. Norris looked set to finish fastest after a late push, but Gasly completed an outstanding lap to go top.<\/span><\/p>\n Behind the leading trio, Piastri slotted into fourth, with Alex Albon impressing in fifth for Williams. Russell took sixth despite complaining of braking issues, while Carlos Sainz placed seventh after a close call with a slow-moving Ferrari. <\/span><\/p>\n Hamilton, Verstappen, and Tsunoda rounded out the top ten.<\/span><\/p>\n Norris ended Friday on top in Jeddah, setting the fastest time in FP2<\/a> ahead of teammate Piastri during a session briefly halted following a late crash for Tsunoda.<\/span><\/p>\n Building on his strong pace from FP1, Norris immediately set a lap time of 1:29.272 on the medium compound. Piastri was behind him, missing out by just 0.001s in an early display of McLaren\u2019s pace. <\/span><\/p>\n The order shifted as soft tyres came into play. <\/span><\/p>\n Russell was first to make the switch, lowering the benchmark to a 1:28.973, despite complaining of high-speed bouncing in his W16. As the session progressed, others began to find their rhythm. Sainz, Verstappen, and Piastri each had brief stints at the top until Norris led the way again. <\/span><\/p>\n The Briton set a 1:28.340, ending the session with a dominant 1:28.267. That time remained unbeaten as most teams shifted focus to long-run simulations.<\/span><\/p>\n Piastri slotted into second, just over a tenth back, with Verstappen<\/a> third and Leclerc fourth. Sainz<\/a> continued to look at ease in the Williams, completing the top five ahead of Tsunoda. <\/span><\/p>\n However, Tsunoda\u2019s session ended at the barriers at Turn 27 after clipping the inside wall and breaking his suspension. The impact brought out red flags with just minutes remaining, limiting drivers to practice starts as the clock ran out. <\/span><\/p>\n Russell took seventh, with Gasly, Nico H\u00fclkenberg, and Albon completing the top ten.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n READ MORE:<\/strong> 2025 Saudi Arabian GP Preview: The Grid Heads to Jeddah for Round Five<\/a><\/p>\n Norris again led the way at the 2025 Saudi Arabian GP, topping the final practice session ahead of Piastri to secure a McLaren one-two. <\/span><\/p>\n FP3<\/a> marked the final chance for teams to fine-tune their set-ups before qualifying, and early action was limited. <\/span><\/p>\n Kick Sauber\u2019s Gabriel Bortoleto hit the track first, eager to make up for lost time after sitting out FP2 due to a fuel leak. Jack Doohan started on the softs, while Haas sent Ocon and Bearman out early, joined by the Aston Martins on mediums.<\/span><\/p>\n With 20 minutes gone, the session came to life. <\/span>Verstappen briefly led with a lap 0.045s quicker than the McLaren pair, but it proved short-lived. <\/span><\/p>\n As soft-tyre runs became the focus, drivers began to find time on their second push laps, underlining the importance of track space and traffic management, with Hadjar among those caught out by slower cars. <\/span><\/p>\n As the field geared up for their final laps, Russell struck first, going quickest with a 1:28.214 before Piastri lowered the bar to a 1:27.513. <\/span><\/p>\n Norris initially slotted in behind, but with just minutes remaining, he delivered an impressive final effort of 1:27.489, enough to narrowly reclaim the top spot.<\/span><\/p>\n Qualifying<\/a> began with a busy start in Jeddah, with all drivers heading out on softs. Piastri and Norris continued their fine form from practice, switching fastest times, but Verstappen eventually topped the session with a 1:27.778. <\/span><\/p>\n Drama struck for Hadjar, who reported brushing the wall, while Alpine endured a worrying moment as Gasly was released with a tyre warmer still attached. The final minutes saw the usual shuffle as drivers attempted to escape the drop zone. <\/span><\/p>\n Knocked out in Q1: Stroll, Doohan, Hulkenberg, Ocon, and Bortoleto.<\/strong><\/p>\n Norris held strong in Q2, setting a session-topping 1:27.481 to lead Verstappen by 0.043s. However, the Red Bull driver expressed concerns about his car after clipping a kerb. <\/span><\/p>\n Meanwhile, the fight to reach Q3 was fierce. Luckily for Mercedes and Williams, Antonelli and Sainz delivered under pressure to move safely through. <\/span><\/p>\n Knocked out in Q2: Albon, Lawson, Alonso, Hadjar, and Bearman.<\/strong><\/p>\n The final shootout got underway with Piastri setting the only lap time of the session before teammate Norris crashed, which brought out the red flag and added tension to the closing minutes. <\/span><\/p>\n After the restart, Russell briefly held P1 before Piastri exerted a strong effort to take provisional pole. <\/span><\/p>\n Verstappen, however, had timed his final lap to perfection. With a smooth run, the reigning champion stole pole position by a tenth of a second, denying McLaren the race start they were hoping for.<\/span><\/p>\n YOU MAY ALSO LIKE:<\/strong> Tyler Ankrum Snaps 130-Race Winless Streak in NASCAR Truck Series\u2019 Return to Rockingham<\/a><\/p>\n Piastri secured a commanding victory at the 2025 Saudi Arabian GP, holding off Verstappen to take his third win of the season. <\/span><\/p>\n The Australians\u2019 triumph was set in stone after Verstappen received a five-second time penalty for forcing Piastri off at the opening corner. <\/span><\/p>\n P1ASTRI AGAIN! \ud83c\udfc6@OscarPiastri<\/a> secures our first-ever win in Saudi Arabia \ud83e\udde1#McLaren<\/a> | #SaudiArabianGP<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/IfmkWbNGgD<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 McLaren (@McLarenF1) April 20, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\nFriday FP2: Norris Rises in Jeddah<\/h3>\n
Saturday FP3: McLaren Domination Begins<\/h3>\n
Saturday Qualifying: Verstappen on Pole<\/h3>\n
Saudi Arabian GP: Piastri Takes His Third Win of 2025<\/h3>\n
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