Great qualifying.

P3 set a new track record at the finish line.
P2 set a new track record at the finish line.
P1 set a new track record at the finish line that stands.

All by a very narrow margin. Three different manufacturers.

Max rung every tenth out of his Red Bull . Oscar is right there as is George . Lando 😭 . definitely screwed the pooch in Q3 . Hopefully it will be a good race .

The cars are really fast in those twisties. The grip is so much higher than last week, until it isn’t!

Interesting VER interview with Coultard at the finish

He’s a petulant baby!

Interesting race, not sure what is going on with Aston this year, they just don’t have the car at all. Nice to see Charles get on the podium.

Charles earned that one. His early tire management gave him fresher tires in the latter stages of the race to catch and pass George and, more importantly, maintain a gap to Lando. His teammate on the other hand had a lackluster race, finishing just ahead of the man he replaced.
Kudos to Carlos for helping Alex keep ahead of the faster junior Red Bull car to secure 8th and 9th for Williams.

Best
Les

Yea, he was not real happy. He knew if he said what he felt, it would be an expensive fine. As he had not yet seen the video of just how that turn one corner incident really went down, he best keep his mouth shut. Of course after the race is is all over, and can't be changed. It looks like Max did gain an unfair advantage by going off line.

He had to make a decision at crazy fast speed to crash, brake and maybe get rear ended, or go off track. In his mind, he made the right decision. It was just a matter of a few feet.

It will be an interesting championship fight amongst three drivers, and maybe even four.

When I first saw the Saudi circuit I expected it to be a mess with high speed multicar crashes and not much racing. I've been proven wrong. With the possible passing, it's a fun one to watch.

Funny how Verstapen can dish it out but can't take it when he's on the losing end of a first turn battle.

I want to like Max, but when he opens his mouth, I can't. Perhaps he will grow up one day.

analysis of why VER got the penalty. Seems pretty cut and dried. But can't embed the video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNg0nrldZ_M

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Defending Max here, as not a Max fan & definitely not a RedBull fan.
I dunno... I recall another race (saw the pic, can't remember) where Max was inside at turn 1 and was penalized for forcing the other guy on the paint (which he did)... This time he's the one outside on the paint and he still gets the penalty.. I do agree it was Piastri's corner but I can also understand why Max would be annoyed, there is ZERO consistency from the stewards, none, ever...
Also he got talked to right out of the car by "Monsignore" MBS and threatened with more penalties if he so much as badmouthed a single decision from the stewards. So you can understand why he said "nothing" and people assume he's acting petulant when in fact he does not want to get more "community service". I would not be surprised to see him take a year off this crap until MBS is fired...

The FIA is a complete mess. MBS is an attention seeking clown. The no-swearing thing is a joke that makes it all boring, and they could not even enforce the V10 return... I hear Malcom wilson is now VP at the FIA, I wonder what that means for his WRC team next year - looks bleak for rallying... Anyway I predict it's gonna get worse as long as MBS is in charge, and their corrupt system of election will make him hard to remove.

No one can enforce V10's

50:50 hybrid cake is well baked, too late to take it out of the oven

I read GM have deferred their PU introduction
by a year, 2028 would have an impossible target

Regarding Max here is my theory why he is the way he is . He was born to race as his father was a racer . From a very early age he was taught to eat/sleep racing 24/7 . He was pushed hard . That has made him VERY driven to succeed.

He wants to win every time he gets in a car . His passion is to win . Nothing less will do . It's the same passion that greats like Senna and Schumacher had . Do whatever it takes to win . Every time all the time . Some would say ruthless .

I think people like him come along every once in a while . Sure every racer wants to win or be successful . But guys like Senna/Schumi/Max are just different . They can will the car to success when others can't . Getting 11/10's out of a car is a gift/talent not everyone has .

I was a fan of Schumi , probably as close to a hero as I ever had outside of my family . I am a fan of Max but it's not the same as it was with Schumi . Maybe because I am older . But I can appreciate what Max can do in that RB that others can't . Sorry for the long winded reply I was just in the mood 😆

VER’s father was a dick. He’s a dick. Learned his “craft” from someone who didn’t give a s@“t about other drivers. Acorn don’t fall too far from the tree.

Fundamentally VER is a bully. I hate bullies. Root for him if you want. For me, I hope ultimately he fails.

Define fails ? If he retires today he already did not fail... 4WC, youngest driver to win, I've seen his yatch... I hear you about the bully thing 100%, I felt the same about (gasp) Senna. He is a saint now because he died on track but while alive I thought he was a d#ck on track, and initially lied about taking out Prost at Suzuka only to confess later... I guess most of those guys are ruthless $%$#%$# and only chill out when retired. Even Vettel who is very likable now was Mr Multi21!

On another topic: Sir Lewis

Not gonna bother looking back at who thought we has gonna mop the floor with Leclerc (mostly the brit press), but yeah.. that did not happen. I know the guy won a sprint (possibly as an early sprint race setup fluke) but look at him now ? He is consistently 0.5 sec behind Charles in qualifying, 4 positions behind at the flag, and constantly looks like someone just ran over his dog at all interviews.. Looks utterly miserable...

What do you think? I think if Ferrari comes back on form, he still will be behind Charles. He looks confused/depressed. Maybe age does matter after all... Maybe those new heavier cars never suited him... Kind of a bummer, while I was never a fan boy, I wanted to see him leave on a high as a "clean" driver and good sportsman... Whoever said Sainz should have stayed was right, they would have saved Ferrari a bundle too !

At this stage of the game, I think Lewis is hoping that the 2026 regs will give him an 8th WDC. I don't see it, I think age and success have blunted his edge,, and I wonder if Elkann and Vasseur are second guessing their decision to eject Sainz. Or their decision to create essentially a new car instead of upgrading and refining last years challenger. 'Sharll' doesn't seem to be as happy with the car as he was last year, and he's obviously the #1 driver in that team. He was getting good results last year. He should have been building on that success.

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They should be second guessing that. Carlos is probably one of the best at determining what a car is doing or needs. Or a least that the vibe I get from hearing his communication with the team. And, he's a dang good driver to boot.

"I spent too many sad years at Ferrari." I think Hamilton is beginning to understand why Alonso said that. Vettel never seemed happy there either.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, Ferrari are too Italian to win in this modern era. The Frenchman has helped a little, as the Englishman did along with the German, but ultimately, they are simply too arrogant, they don't listen to their drivers, and somewhere along the line someone told them it was a "privilege" or an "honor" to drive for them. They are hopeless. I don't think they will ever win another championship. How long has it been since the Finn won them their last one?

And let's face it - if Hamilton had stayed at Mercedes, Russel would be handing him his ass there ae well. I have never considered him a top tier driver. He had the great good fortune of driving the most dominant car possibly in the history of the sport, and even then he managed to lose the championship to a teammate during that period. He has never been able to help with the car (unlike Michael and how he went to the dead last team on the grid and helped lift them to championship status), all he does is whine and complain about this that and the other thing. I predict that he is going to continue to have a terrible season, stick around for the new regs, totally suck in that car as well, then retire. You heard it here first... ;)