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The championship leader branded himself a “f*****g idiot” on the radio after hitting the kerbs at turns four and five and crashing into the wall during his first run in Q3.
His session was over and Verstappen, Oscar Piastri and George Russell were left to slug it out for pole, with the Dutchman banishing pre-race talk over his future with another scintillating qualifying performance.
Russell will line up third for Mercedes after another fine display, ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. Lewis Hamilton’s disappointing qualifying form continued as he could manage only seventh.
When is the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix?
Time BST
Sunday 20 April
Kieran Jackson19 April 2025 20:22
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff:
On McLaren being at the top: “Things can swing, you are talking about a few tenths, you can catch them.”
On Russell: “He’s going a top job. He’s such a stoic person, people talked about Lewis and Max, now you can see how he’s delivering. He’s performing in that car to the maximum. He’s getting better, better and better.”
On Antonelli: “It’s important to tackle it actively, he’s learning. I don’t want him to take any risks in the high speed.”
On potential of signing Verstappen: “I wouldn't say that, I don't flirt if I'm happy in the relationship in a professional way. I am super happy with the line-up we have, Max is at Red Bull, we haven't had a conversation."
Kieran Jackson20 April 2025 14:19
Lewis Hamilton admits he’s finding Ferrari F1 car ‘very difficult’ after another poor qualifying
Lewis Hamilton admits he’s finding it “very difficult” to bond with the Ferrari F1 car after another difficult qualifying session in Saudi Arabia.
Hamilton has been short of speed all weekend at the high-speed Jeddah street circuit and only narrowly managed to make the top-10 shootout in qualifying.
“It was challenging as always, qualifying for me,” Hamilton reflected afterwards. The 40-year-old has not qualified in the top three so far in 2025, aside from his sprint race win in China.
Full quotes below:
Kieran Jackson20 April 2025 14:00
WATCH: Lando Norris reacts after crash in qualifying
Kieran Jackson20 April 2025 13:02
FULL STARTING GRID:
1. Max Verstappen
2. Oscar Piastri
3. George Russell
4. Charles Leclerc
5. Kimi Antonelli
6. Carlos Sainz
7. Lewis Hamilton
8. Yuki Tsunoda
9. Pierre Gasly
10. Lando Norris
11. Alex Albon
12. Liam Lawson
13. Fernando Alonso
14. Isack Hadjar
15. Ollie Bearman
16. Lance Stroll
17. Jack Doohan
18. Nico Hulkenberg
19. Esteban Ocon
20. Gabriel Bortoleto
Kieran Jackson20 April 2025 13:01
Aston Martin ‘set to offer £226m for reigning F1 champion Max Verstappen’
Aston Martin are reportedly set to offer Max Verstappen £226m over three years in an attempt to persuade the Red Bull driver to switch teams next year.
Four-time F1 world champion Verstappen, who has a contract worth £50m-a-year at Red Bull until the end of the 2028 season, is being heavily linked with Aston and Mercedes given Red Bull’s recent downturn in form and new regulations being enforced in 2026.
Aston have also recently recruited former Red Bull designer Adrian Newey, who is fully focused on next year’s car. Newey designed all four of Verstappen’s championship-winning cars at Red Bull.
Full story below:
Kieran Jackson20 April 2025 12:02
F1 driver standings after four races
4. George Russell – 63 points
5. Charles Leclerc – 35 points
6. Kimi Antonelli – 30 points
8. Alex Albon – 18 points
9. Esteban Ocon – 14 points
10. Lance Stroll – 10 points
11. Pierre Gasly – 6 points
12. Nico Hulkenberg – 6 points
13. Ollie Bearman – 6 points
14. Isack Hadjar – 4 points
16. Carlos Sainz – 1 point
17. Liam Lawson – 0 points
18. Jack Doohan – 0 points
19. Gabriel Bortoleto – 0 points
20. Fernando Alonso – 0 points
Kieran Jackson20 April 2025 11:04
George Russell on prospect of Mercedes signing Max Verstappen:
“Why wouldn’t they want to sign Max? It’s totally understandable,” Russell said.
“He’s the best at the moment. He’s a four-time world champion. That’s not anything against me or Kimi. There’s two drivers for every team and he is one person.
“So that doesn’t concern me one bit because the performance is my currency and right now I think I am performing as good as anyone on this grid.”
Kieran Jackson20 April 2025 10:01
PREVIEW: How Saudi Arabia has sights set on F1 summit with $480m ‘Rainbow Road’ Qiddiya track
Initial glances at the future of Formula One in Saudi Arabia look like something out of another galaxy.
In fact, fans online have likened the renderings of Qiddiya Speed Park, due for completion in 2027 at a cost of $480m (£360m), to Rainbow Road in the video game Mario Kart. And with a 70m incline at turn one, nicknamed “The Blade”, it’s not actually as outlandish a comparison as it might seem.
Kieran Jackson20 April 2025 09:02
Max Verstappen responds to Red Bull F1 exit speculation: ‘A lot of people are talking’
Red Bull adviser Helmut Marko poured fuel on the fire when he stated post-Bahrain that the team has “great concern” over Verstappen’s future, given their current struggles.
“I don’t know, to be honest,” Verstappen said, in Thursday’s press conference at the Saudi Arabian GP, when asked why Marko made those comments.
“I just keep working, trying to improve the car. Naturally, Bahrain was not a great weekend for us. I think we were all pretty disappointed with that.
“We keep trying to come up with new ideas to try on the car, the competition is tough, that’s how i go about my weeks. Just trying to improve my situation.
Kieran Jackson20 April 2025 08:04
English (US) ·