An exciting weekend of racing in Bahrain has come and gone – but don’t go anywhere – it’s time for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix
The first round of the 2024 F1 season saw reigning champion Max Verstappen claim his first victory, raised more questions than answers in the midfield, and have some already jumping ship on the 2024 season. Let’s examine all of that and look ahead to the upcoming Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
Red Bull Once Again Dominant, Ferrari Emerges as Main Challengers
The Bahrain Grand Prix saw Dutch driver Max Verstappen qualify on pole and take home the victory, with fellow Red Bull driver Sergio Perez taking the second place. For those who followed the 2023 season, the 2024 opener appeared much the same, with Verstappen quickly building a large lead and never looking back, eventually finishing 22 seconds ahead of Perez.
Another similar sight from 2023 was Red Bull’s main challenger emerging as Ferrari, as drivers Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc took third and fourth place, respectively. Sainz, currently without a seat in 2025, is looking to prove himself a hot commodity on the driver’s market. It was a disappointing race for Leclerc, who, after starting second, struggled with brake balance issues, eventually finishing 39 seconds behind the leader.
Last year’s other contenders, Mercedes, McLaren, and Aston Martin, also walked away similarly disappointed. The first two were unable to compete for the podium, and the latter’s drivers were relegated to ninth and tenth positions. The Aston Martin in particular struggled with pace among the other points scorers, although Montreal-born driver Lance Stroll managed a strong recovery drive after a collision on the first lap saw him relegated to last.
Questions and Conflict in the Midfield
It is difficult to evaluate what seems to be a crowded midfield after just one race, and only one potential midfield contender — Aston Martin — scored any points. However, there were some signs of how the competition may shake up this year.
For Haas, coming off a season where they finished last in the Championship, showing improvement was key if they hoped to position themselves in midfield contention. Their weekend started off strong, with driver Nico Hulkenberg qualifying tenth; however this hope was quickly dashed as Hulkenberg was involved in the collision with Lance Stroll on the opening lap, and he proceeded to fall down the order. Their other driver, Kevin Magnussen, had a solid race after qualifying 15th, coming home with a 12th-place finish.
Another team competing for the midfield is the newly rechristened Racing Bulls, with their first full season of drivers Daniel Riccardo and Yuki Tsunoda. However, after promising practice results, they qualified out of the points at P14 and P11 respectively.
The race proved dramatic as the two drivers fought back and forth, with Tsunoda blowing up on team radio after team orders called for Riccardo to overtake, which the Japanese driver resisted before allowing the Australian to pass. This was followed by an aggressive overtake move from Tsunoda on the cooldown lap, which caused Riccardo to shout a burst of expletives over the team radio.
Look Ahead to Saudi Arabia
The Saudi Arabian Grand Prix is located at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, a 6.174 kilometre street circuit located in the port city of Jeddah which has hosted the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix since its inception in 2021. It was one of the three races not won by Verstappen in 2023, and instead, his teammate Sergio Perez took home first. For, Perez a repeat of 2023 would be welcome as he attempts to keep pace with last year’s champion in the Driver’s Championship.
For Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, a strong result in Jeddah will be key for maintaining third place in the Championship. Sainz has a strong history in Saudi Arabia, having finished with points in each race since its inception. A win here would show Red Bull that they will not go unchallenged this season, and secure Ferrari’s place as a top contender this season. Update: Carlos Sainz was taken to the hospital with appendicitis after Free Practice 2.
Another team looking to improve this weekend will be Alpine. Last week in Bahrain, concerns many had about their car were confirmed, as the A524 was slow, both in single-lap performance and race pace and unable to effectively fight for points. However, coming into Jeddah, where both drivers scored points a year ago, expectations will be there for some gains on track to be made.
The Saudi Arabian Grand Prix gets underway at 12:00 PM ET on Saturday, March 9th, check standings, news, times, and scores here.
