With 2 races before the end of the season in Formula 1, the qualifying stage of the race, which will be held tomorrow at 20.30 CET, ended today. Especially with Verstappen’s dramatic end in Q3, Lewis Hamilton took the first line, while at the same time gaining a great advantage for tomorrow’s race.
Max Verstappen continues to lead by 8 points in the drivers’ championship in Formula 1, ahead of Lewis Hamilton (351. 5 / 343.5); In the constructors’ championship, Mercedes has a 5-point advantage over Red Bull (546. 5 / 541.5). Let’s review the developments and qualifying laps in F1 all week.
Formula 1 debuts in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia Jeddah Street Track
Saudi Arabia is hosting F1 for the first time this year with the Jeddah Street Circuit. Standing out as a very long and fast track, Jeddah has 3 DRS zones.
A lot of construction work is still going on around a new runway, the Jeddah Avenue Runway. This caused some questions in the world of F1 about the lack of readiness of the track or safety issues. F1 Race Director Michael Masi said in a statement that “the track is completely safe and ready to race”.
Nico Rosberg’s favorite Hamilton
F1 Former World Champion Nico Rosberg said in a statement that he sees his former teammate Lewis Hamilton as a favorite and advantageous in the championship race compared to Red Bull’s Dutch driver Max Verstappen.
Response to engine change claims from Red Bull
In Saudi Arabia, it was on the agenda that Red Bull would change the engine for Max Verstappen. Red Bull has announced that it treats these allegations as fake news, at least during qualifying. In the event of a possible failure in qualifying, Verstappen’s switch to a new engine is considered certain.
Painful loss for F1 World: Frank Williams dies
Frank Williams, founder of Williams F1 team, passed away during the week. Due to this sad development, both F1 management and Williams announced that they will hold commemorations in Saudi Arabia. A special “Frank Williams” sticker was also affixed to the Williams vehicle.
Special security vehicle for Saudi Arabia
Special medical vehicle for Saudi Arabia
The safety vehicle and medical vehicle that will accompany the race this week will be Aston Martin, but its green color is not Aston Martin’s green; It will be a slightly lighter shade of green, which we are familiar with from the Saudi Arabian flag.
1. Training results: Hamilton is comfortably on top
Mercedes’ British driver Lewis Hamilton finished first in Jeddah Street Circuit 1st Training Session held on Friday. While completing the first three rows with Verstappen and Bottas; Red Bull’s other driver, Sergio Perez, was disappointing and finished 11th.
2. Training results: Leclerc crash scared
The pilots generally complained about the traffic in this session. While Nikita Mazepin was spinning in this session, Charles Leclerc had a serious accident. Although Leclerc survived the accident undamaged, his car was badly damaged. Hamilton finished the session first, as in the first session, while his teammate Bottas finished second. Verstappen dropped to 4th place this time, while Perez was able to find a place for himself in 9th place.
While Ferrari explained that Leclerc’s vehicle was not damaged in terms of engine and chassis in this heavy accident; The FIA has announced that it prohibits drivers from decelerating at Turns 23 and 25 in order to prevent possible accidents, following the complaints of the drivers.
3. Training results: Hamilton escaped cheap
In this session, the first three rows were Verstappen, Hamilton and Perez; Bottas found himself in 6th place.
Lewis Hamilton received a reprimand and a $25,000 fine for blocking Nikita Mazepin during practice; Also, Bottas’ power unit was changed after this session.
Qualifying Session 1 (Q1): Bottas had ignition problems, big loss for Vettel
Sergio Perez finished Q1 in first place; Bottas and Ricciardo were the other top three drivers. Max Verstappen took 5th place while Lewis Hamilton took 9th place. Nicholas Latifi, Sebastian Vettel, Lance Stroll, Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin were eliminated in this round; Seconds before the end of the session, there was a sudden heavy traffic due to the ignition problem Bottas had in the first sector. As Bottas entered the pit lane very slowly, he was unable to continue into the garage and the mechanics had to push the car into the garage. Verstappen, who came with a good rating, would most likely have been placed in the first line if Bottas had not had a firing problem. Also, Vettel might not have been eliminated.
Qualifying Round 2 (Q2): Hamilton tops, Ricciardo and Alonso disappointing
Although Sainz had a minor accident in this section, he was able to continue on his way without any damage. Hamilton, Perez, Verstappen and Bottas made the top four; Ricciardo, Räikkönen, Alonso, Russell and Sainz were eliminated in this round. While the elimination of Ricciardo, Alonso and Sainz in particular was a surprise, Mr. Saturday also upset F1 fans.
Qualifying Round 3 (Q3): Big misfortune for Verstappen
The third session was the scene of great excitement. Lewis Hamilton takes the pole position; it was followed by Bottas, Verstappen, Leclerc and Perez. However, the event that marked the session was that Verstappen, who came in with a quarter-second better time than Hamilton in the last seconds, experienced a front slip in the 3rd sector, breaking when the rear suspension came into contact with the barriers and could not complete his lap.
The excitement of racing in Formula 1 will continue on Sunday at 20.30 CEST.
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