Full marks well deserved in Jeddah by Verstappen and last-minute Ferrari stand-in Bearman, while Stroll pips Ricciardo for the wooden spoon
JAKE BOXALL-LEGGE
RED BULL
Started 1st -- -- -- -- -- -- Result 1st
10 7
Sailed away after keeping Leclerc at arm’s length into opening corner. Trademark consistency on hard tyres bore fruit, although overall margin over Perez not as commanding as in Bahrain. Battle with Norris after safety car was brief, and pass for the lead wasn’t too challenging.
Started 3rd - -- -- -- - Result 2nd
Same result as in Bahrain, but much better run than in opening round and largely matched Verstappen’s pace throughout the GP. Admitted fault for unsafe release penalty, which inflated gap to team-mate by extra five seconds. Move on Leclerc looked easy with straightline speed advantage.
MERCEDES
Started 8th---------- Result 9th
6Looked a little out of sorts in qualifying, but moved up to third after staying out under safety car. Ceded places to Perez and Leclerc, but did well to preserve his medium tyres and keep Piastri at bay. Put Norris under scrutiny in late-race stint on softs, but frustrated by his defence.
Started 7th---------- Result 6th
7A solid, if unspectacular, performance. Outqualified Hamilton again, but struggled to pose a consistent threat to Alonso. Managed to get within DRS range briefly, but could not maintain the same degree of pace as the Aston and had to be content with sixth in a somewhat lonely race.
FERRARI
Started 2nd -- - -- -- -- Result 3rd
9On the front row once again after strong qualifying effort. Could do little about Perez in early stages, and then breezed past the later-stopping Norris on lap 27. Was short about half a second compared to the Red Bulls, although claimed the fastest lap to deny Verstappen a full suite of points.
Started 11th - -- -- - Result 7th
10Heroic effort after being dropped in at the deep end. Forgivable mistake in Q2 cost a Q3 berth, but was delightfully aggressive in the race. Opportunistic move on Tsunoda after safety car ensured points were on. Kept his cool despite Norris and Hamilton looming in his mirrors.
McLAREN
Started 6th---------- Result 8th
