Piastri wins in Saudi Arabia and takes title lead

McLaren’s Oscar Piastri took his third win of the year and with it the world championship lead at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

Piastri benefited from a penalty for Red Bull’s Max Verstappen to take control of the race and score his second win in a week.

Verstappen was given a five-second penalty for illegally keeping the lead from Piastri by going off the track at the first corner but had more than enough pace to keep second place.

McLaren’s Lando Norris recovered from 10th place on the grid after his crash in qualifying to finish fourth behind Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.

Norris, on an off-set tyre strategy, was closing in on Leclerc as the race reached its closing stages but his medium tyres lost their edge of pace and the Ferrari driver was able to hold him back.

Piastri’s third win in five races so far this season puts the Australian 10 points clear of Norris in the championship, with Verstappen just two points further adrift.

Verstappen appeared annoyed at the penalty as he kept his post-race interview brief, saying: “I’m going to keep it quite short. I want to say a big thank you to the fans in Jeddah. It’s been a great weekend along the track and the rest is what it is. I’m looking forward to Miami. See you there.”

Piastri said: “Once I got on the inside I wasn’t coming out of Turn One in second. I tried my best and obviously the stewards had to get involved, but I thought I was far enough and in the end that’s what got me the race.

“I’m very happy with all the work we’ve been doing on the starts and that’s what won the race for us today.”Verstappen had said after taking an unexpected and superb pole position on Saturday that he expected it to be difficult to hold Piastri back.

But he will not have thought his race would be decided as soon as it was.

Piastri got much the better launch and was completely alongside the Red Bull as they entered the first corner.

Verstappen hung it out around the outside, cut the chicane and retained the lead on the exit. He claimed that Piastri had forced him off, but the stewards disagreed and gave the Dutchman his penalty, which he served at his pit stop.

Piastri, who had tracked Verstappen closely through the first stint, before beginning to drop off a little in the couple of laps before their stops, was now in a 4.8-second lead, which he managed to stabilise for the rest of the race.

There was some jeopardy in the closing stages as Piastri was held up by Lance Stroll’s tardy Aston Martin as he came up to lap the Canadian, but once clear he was able to edge away again and crossed the line 2.8secs ahead.

Verstappen’s superlative first stint ensured he kept second place ahead of Mercedes’ George Russell, but Leclerc brought himself into contention for the podium, with an outstanding first stint.

Leclerc ran long on the medium tyres, waiting until lap 29 to make his pit stop, nine later than Russell and 10 after Piastri.

Leclerc rejoined only 3.5secs behind Russell, had caught him within seven laps, and was past one lap later to take an excellent podium, Ferrari’s first in a grand prix this season.

Norris was another to drive a strong race. McLaren chose the hard tyre for the start and ran him long before his pit stop, hoping the strategy would bank him some laps in clear air in which he could run his best pace.

That happened as the other front-runners made their pit stops, leaving Norris in the lead for four laps before his own stop.

Norris rejoined in fifth place, a little over six seconds behind Russell in third.

Norris caught Russell and passed him on lap 41, three laps after Leclerc had done.

But although he cut Leclerc’s lead from nearly four seconds to just over one, he could not quite catch the Ferrari before the flag.

The race lived up to its reputation for a safety car every time when Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda and Alpine’s Pierre Gasly tangled on the first lap at Turn Four.

But there were no further interruptions as Andrea Kimi Antonelli followed Russell home in sixth place after a quiet race, ahead of Lewis Hamilton, still struggling in the Ferrari.

Williams’ Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon took eighth and ninth ahead of the Racing Bull of Isack Hadjar.

It’s a two-week break before the first visit of the season to North America, with the Miami Grand Prix from 2-4 May. Last season it was the scene of Norris’ first Formula 1 victory.