Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix

The pit lane is open for cars to head out onto track and do some reconnaissance laps ahead of today's race, but how many of them will make it beyond the first turn? We've seen in all three Formula 2 races this weekend multiple cars getting involved in accidents and either safety cars or red flags being thrown before they've completed a lap. Today's feature race was halted after a start line incident between Theo Pourchaire and Enzo Fittipaldi, who have both been taken to hostpital as a result. All 20 drivers will hope to avoid such danger on their first of 50 laps.

Completing the points would be Ricciardo, Gasly, Leclerc, Sainz, Giovinazzi and Norris, who was among those pitted during the safety car and dropped to the back during the red flag periods. In a chaotic race on the narrow streets of Jeddah there were three standing starts, two red flags, five virtual safety cars, numerous drivers crashing out and endless arguments over team radio. Controversy then began on Lap 37, as Hamilton had made use of DRS to pass Verstappen on the main straight, but Verstappen took back the lead cutting Turns 1 and 2, prompting the team to order Verstappen to give back the position. As he did so coming into the final turn, Verstappen abruptly slowed, causing Hamilton to collide into him and damaging his front wing.

Despite the damage, Hamilton continued setting fastest laps and closed back into Verstappen again, who ceded the lead to him on the last turn again but reclaiming the lead as Hamilton ran wide. Verstappen was then issued a 5-second time penalty for the corner cutting, before Hamilton finally took back the lead for good on the last corner on Lap 43 as the Dutchman's medium rubber started to lose performance. Bottas meanwhile had cleared Ricciardo for 4th during the chaos, as Vettel retired with a damaged car with five laps remaining. The race at the brand-new Jeddah Corniche Circuit promised plenty of action and delivered on that in spades, with incident and accident seeing the 50 laps take place over two and a quarter hours. This was due to two red flags, multiple safety cars and constant virtual safety car periods to remove debris from the high-speed layout. Two and a half hours long, multiple red flags, tons of drama, Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton making hard contact, and huge implications.

The penultimate race on the F1 calendar ended with Hamilton getting the win amid controversy, and now there's a virtual tie for the championship going into the final race. Hamilton seemed destined to cut into Verstappen's series lead as he got off to a fantastic start, but Red Bull got a huge break with a red flag while Verstappen held the lead. But then Verstappen got his own bad break on the re-start with a dicey move and had to give up track position.

Finally, we also had a case where Hamilton hit Verstappen in an apparent miscommunication that became controversial as Hamilton said Verstappen braked and caused the hit. Mercedes extended their lead to 28 points in the constructors' standings from Red Bull, following Perez' retirement and Verstappen unable to strategically deny Hamilton the fastest lap point due to the time penalties imposed. Both McLaren drivers outscored Ferrari by one point after the race, meaning Ferrari were all but guaranteed to secure third in the constructors' championship, heading into Abu Dhabi. Despite losing out the podium position, Ocon closed into within 5 points of his team-mate. The first incident began on the tenth lap, when Schumacher lost his rear and crashed his Haas heavily into the barriers at Turns 22 and 23 (in the same manner as Leclerc's FP2 crash), deploying the safety car. Those who did not pit before the red flag, such as Ocon and Ricciardo, gained a massive advantage in positions; 4th and 5th, respectively.

The race in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, had two red flags, multiple safety cars and had an incident where Hamilton drove into the back of Verstappen, who was trying to give him first position. Note - Hamilton scored an additional point for setting the fastest lap of the race. Tsunoda received a five-second time penalty for causing a collision.

Verstappen received a five-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage and a further 10-second penalty for causing a collision. Tsunoda collided with Vettel at turn one while in ninth place, losing his front wing. He was given a five-second time penalty, with the virtual safety car deployed due to the debris on track. Hamilton started on pole initially and took the 103rd win of his career, third in a row and eighth of the season to level on points with Verstappen, who still leads on race wins.

Bottas, in his 100th race for Mercedes, took third from Ocon by 30 metres in a dash for the line. Mercedes are now 28 points ahead of Red Bull in the constructors' championship. The Grand Prix has received criticism from Amnesty International on the grounds of human rights in Saudi Arabia. Haas' Mick Schumacher was soon into a barrier, causing a safety car period that turned into a red flag.

This enabled Verstappen to move into the lead on the restart since the Mercedes drivers had both stopped for new tires. On 28 November, one week before the race, Williams co-founder and former owner Sir Frank Williams died at the age of 79. Teams sported tributes on their cars, and a minute's silence took place approximately one hour before the start of the race. On Sunday, former Williams driver Damon Hill did a lap of honour in the FW07, Williams's first championship winning car.

Alpine ran a special livery for the weekend to commemorate their 100th race with one of their sponsors Castrol. On the eve of the race weekend, Williams CEO Jost Capito announced that he was tested COVID-positive, therefore missing the weekend with the team. Human Rights Watch also condemned the decision arguing that "it is part of a cynical strategy to distract from Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses".

According to Human Rights Watch, the Grand Prix and other sports events are being used by Saudi Arabia to distract people from serious human rights abuses. The Global Initiative Director at Human Rights Watch, Minky Worden, called upon Formula One to assess situation in Saudi Arabia and insist on releasing women's rights defenders who spoke in favour of women's right to drive. Saudi Arabia has denied the Grand Prix was being used for sportswashing, arguing that the race is part of a process to open up Saudi Arabia to the outside world. The battle to win this year F1 World Championship is getting hotter with Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton separated by just eight points at the top of the standings.

As the season enters into the final two races,the fight for the constructors' title is also close, with Mercedes just five points clear of its nearest rival Red Bull. Looking at the entire track Lewis Hamilton holds a slight edge over Max Verstappen with the track much suited for Mercedes. There is no room for errors for both drivers as One place lost or gained will potentially make the difference in championship standings. In August 2019, plans for a permanent motorsports complex to be built in the city of Qiddiya were made public. In January 2020, plans for a race track in Qiddiya were officially confirmed at an event, where track designer Wurz, appeared alongside current and former Formula One drivers who were given the opportunity to drive on the layout in a racing simulator.

During the event, it was confirmed that the track was designed to FIA and FIM Grade 1 standards. At the time, Formula One declined to comment on the possibility of a race. The front two immediately pulled away with Hamilton sticking to Verstappen's tail, ferociously quick as they matched one another's times.

Four laps after Mercedes and other teams pitted, Formula 1 decided a red flag was needed for repairs to the barrier that Schumacher hit. Had the race restarted without a red flag, Verstappen would have needed to stop at some point and lost track position to Hamilton and Bottas. The Virtual safety car is out again to clear the debris that is scattered all over the track but we've only got 20 laps to go and they go by very quickly here with such high average speeds. Very quietly, Antonio Giovinazzi has found himself in seventh on his penultimate Grand Prix start before he goes to Formula E and it would be nothing less than he deserves after a fine final season in F1. On Sunday, the McLaren driver was running sixth before he came in for tyres under the safety car caused by Mick Schumacher's crash - but it dropped him to 14th when the red flag then came out, allowing all those who stayed out a free tyre change. Norris did recover to 10th, but made his feelings on the rule known.

In January 2020, plans for a race track in Qiddiya were officially confirmed at an event, where track designer Wurz appeared alongside current and former Formula One drivers who were given the opportunity to drive on the layout in a racing simulator. As Hamilton closed in, a number of virtual safety cars for debris on the track halted his quest to take the lead. But when the track was clear he was again squeezed out by Verstappen, who was told to give the place back by his Red Bull garage. I can tell you that there are 27 corners – that's a lot of corners – but unlike Singapore, where there's also a lot of corners, there's also quite a few straights, three DRS zones in Jeddah.

It's fast, it'll be the second fastest lap in terms of average speed behind Monza, which for a street circuit is fairly awesome. I think they've done an excellent job to get the track ready, albeit some of the infrastructure around the track might not be quite as finished as the the local authorities would like it. Verstappen was third initially but stayed out when the safety car was deployed and Hamilton and Bottas pitted.

He led from the re-start but the race was stopped again and he had to line up behind Hamilton and Ocon as a penalty for gaining an advantage by going off. He then had to hand the lead to Hamilton on lap 38 for another aggressive defence and the pair collided. Hamilton and Bottas led out of the start; with the top five drivers maintaining their positions, heading into the second lap. A few incidents unfolded behind, with Tsunoda dropping places after making contact with Ocon, and Stroll forced off-track at Turn 5 while running alongside Russell. As the Top 5 began pulling away from the field, Hamilton was constantly setting fastest laps; meanwhile Sainz, who had started in 15th, was making progress pushing through the midfield.

In the last weeks leading to the race weekend, photos circulated online showed that the circuit construction progress appeared to have been behind schedule. Race officials however assured that the track would be finished in time for the weekend, with the track finally receiving approval from the FIA one day before the first practice session on Friday. Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton are far enough ahead of the field that no other driver can win the championship, but several drivers could complicate the points with a win on Sunday. Following the results of the first Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Hamilton and Verstappen have an equal 369.5 points in the 2021 Drivers' Championship, with Bottas in third with 218 points. In the Constructors' Championship, Mercedes leads with 587.5 points versus the 559.5 of Red Bull and 307.5 of Ferrari. So the title chase is a dead heat going into the final round this weekend in Abu Dhabi.

It's the first time two drivers were tied going into the final round since the 1974 season, when Emerson Fittipaldi battled Clay Regazzoni at Watkins Glen, with Fittipaldi eventually coming out on top. Mick Schumacher crashed 10 laps into the race and brought out a safety car. Mercedes pitted both its drivers and Red Bull and Verstappen decided to stay out on track. Mercedes put the hard compound tires on Hamilton's car with the hope of keeping him on track until the end of the race. From then on, Hamilton powered to the chequered flag and took the victory with the fastest lap, ensuring the pair head to the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix next weekend with no points separating them. If Verstappen finishes lower than second, the battle will stay alive into Abu Dhabi regardless of what Hamilton does.

If Hamilton wins and scores the extra point for fastest lap with Verstappen second, the pair will head into Abu Dhabi level on points but with the Dutchman ahead on account of having won more races (9-8). Leclerc pitted when the safety car was first deployed, an advantage that disappeared with the red flags. He made contact with Perez at the first re-start but was able to continue. Ferrari's advantage over McLaren was trimmed to 38.5 points, but third place looks secure. The new layout shaves 273m from the circuit's length (it's now 5.281km), adds an extra lap to the race distance and should improve the overtaking opportunities for drivers, which have typically been hard to come by. Verstappen then did let Hamilton through but immediately shot back up to retake the lead but in doing so went off the track.

He was then given a five-second penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage and a lap later Verstappen once more let his rival through, concerned he had not done so sufficiently on the previous lap. After all the chaos Hamilton finally led and Verstappen's tyres were wearing, unable to catch the leader who went on to secure a remarkable victory. Hamilton held his lead from pole but an early red flag due to a crash left Verstappen out in front when Red Bull had opted not to pit under a safety car. Verstappen held the lead on the restart, but a crash on lap 15 involving Ferrari's Charles Leclerc and Perez stopped progress, with the damage ending Perez's race. Haas' Nikita Mazepin and Williams' George Russell also collided at this time, causing the second red flag of the race.

Saudi Arabia's first Formula One race turned out to be a chaotic event, with multiple incidents occurring including two red flags and a collision between the two remaining title contenders. The tie means that whoever finishes ahead of the other at Abu Dhabi in a week will win the championship. The only way they could tie — and Verstappen would win the title — is if one driver finishes ninth and the other driver finishes 10th and has the fastest lap of the race. An incident at turn one again, Yuki Tsunoda is the culprit this time and he's lost his front wing as a reuslt. A virtual safety car is deployed to remove the stricken front wing in the run off.

Vettel was the other driver involved and the two met at the pinch point. The two Ferrari's were side by side at the same time and Leclerc went across the chicane to stay ahead. The weekend was dominated by stewards' room chat once again, continuing the theme of recent races. While F1's newest and fastest street track proved thrilling in qualifying, the incident-packed race led to questions about the suitability of the Jeddah Corniche Circuit from a number of drivers.

Max Verstappen received a five-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage. He also received a ten-second time penalty after the race for causing a collision with Lewis Hamilton. Using the links above you can find the full weekend schedule, including details of practice and qualifying sessions, support races, press conferences and special events, plus the latest news headlines, circuit information and F1 race results.

F1 lands at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit for the inaugural Saudi Arabian Grand Prix today as Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton continue their epic battle. Hamilton trails Verstappen by eight points but starts on pole, so hold onto your helmets for a potential title decider! Make sure you know how to watch a Saudi Arabian Grand Prix free live stream wherever you are with a VPN. Carlos Sainz Jr. and Antonio Giovinazzi are the only drivers to have been running at the finish in all 20 races. Verstappen has led 620 laps; the rest of the drivers to have competed this season have combined to lead 569. Seven-time series champion Hamilton started from the pole in Qatar and was never threatened in his second consecutive victory.

He heads into Sunday's race around the streets of Jeddah as favourite to take the title battle down to the wire in Abu Dhabi. If anything, you could imagine Hamilton being completely dominant, winning from pole position with the fastest lap to set himself apart from Michael Schumacher and every other competitor in the sport. The dramatic finish saw Hamilton tying with Verstappen in the drivers' standings heading into the final round; the first time since the 1974 Formula One season, wherein Emerson Fittipaldi won ahead of Clay Regazzoni. However, Verstappen holds an advantage since the tiebreaker considers the number of race wins this season, which Verstappen has 9 compared to Hamilton with 8. Verstappen set the fastest overall time with the Mercedes duo behind, with Hamilton messing up on his initial flying lap. Hamilton later beat Verstappen's time with Bottas second fastest behind.

Verstappen had gone faster than Hamilton in the first two sectors when he locked up a wheel, ran wide and made contact with the wall at the final turn, damaging his suspension and ultimately handing his title rival pole position, being third fastest. While the two frontrunners were playing a game of cat and mouse at the front, several virtual safety cars were triggered as those in the rest of the field kept coming into contact. The race itself promises to be a real spectacle, taking place at night through the historical streets of Jeddah. The start and finish lines will be on the corniche, which runs along the banks of the Red Sea, providing a stunning coastal backdrop for a full weekend of live motorsport, entertainment and culture that will take over Jeddah.

Mercedes-Benz AMG's Lewis Hamilton came out on top at the Sunday race held on a street circuit in the coastal city of Jeddah. Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen finished in second place some 21 seconds back while Mercedes' Valtteri Bottas rounded out the final podium spot after finishing 27 seconds behind his teammate. Hamilton was behind Verstappen for much of the 50-lap race which was stopped twice because of crashes and interrupted numerous times by the safety car and virtual safety car. Hamilton got the lead off the start but Verstappen went off track as he tried to defend on the outside. Esteban Ocon took the lead in the middle of all that mess and then a big crash happened behind involving Sergio Perez, Nicholas Latifi, Nikita Mazepin and others. Barrier repairs are required at turn 22 which has seen the FIA red flag the race.

And that is a huge stroke of luck for Red Bull and Max Verstappen who can now change tyres for free and he holds the legitimate lead of the race! It's a great sign for all of those who haven't stopped like Esteban Ocon who is now fourth. Ricciardo, Sainz and Vettel may have to pit in race still though having started on the hard tyres. We try again and this time Hamilton gets a super start and he's through on Verstappen but the Red Bull goes over the chicane to keep the lead. There's a multi-car crash on the exit of turn three which sees Perez, Mazepin and Russell all out of the race. Four VSCs, three standing starts, two red flags, and a partirdge in a pear tree?

The championship fight goes to Abu Dhabi exactly level on points and we only have to wait a week to find out the champ. Make sure you're back here next week for the most highly anticipated title decider in DECADES. The 27-turn Corniche circuit is the second longest on the calendar, some 800m shorter than Belgium's Spa.