Verstappen-Leclerc Battle Continues: Three Takeaways From Saudi Arabian GP

IMAGO / HochZwei

The epic battle between Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc rages on as the two duked it out for the win for a second consecutive race. 

This time, though, the reigning world champion came out victorious following a thrilling series of wheel-to-wheel maneuvers. Verstappen edged past the Ferrari driver with four laps remaining and held on tight until the checkered flag. But it was not a runaway for the Red Bull star—he finished just half a second ahead of Leclerc. 

“It wasn't enough today, but oh my god, I really enjoyed that race,” Leclerc said. “It's hard racing but it's fair, every race should be like this. It was fun, I'm obviously disappointed, I wanted to win today.”

Ferrari teammate Carlos Sainz took third, rounding out the podium and marking the second race with both Ferrari drivers standing onstage. Sergio Perez, who had the pole position this weekend, finished fourth while George Russell ended fifth for Mercedes, Alpine's Esteban Ocon taking sixth and McLaren's Lando Norris coming in seventh.

Lewis Hamilton, meanwhile, finished 10th after starting 15th.

Sainz, Perez and Kevin Magnussen were under investigation for allegedly not slowing sufficiently under yellows late in the race, but no further action was taken on the last two laps. 

With Formula One's three days in the desert coming to an end, there's much to reflect between what in the world happened on the circuit as only 14 drivers finished the race and the questions raised pertaining to the country where they competed. 

Here's three takeaways from the chaotic weekend in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Is there a new rivalry in town?

The games continued between Verstappen and Leclerc as the two fought tooth and nail for the victory on Sunday, and most of it boiled down to strategic Drag Reduction System (DRS) use. 

DRS is essentially an adjustable rear wing that can be used when trying to overtake an opponent. 

Verstappen first passed Leclerc on lap 42, and it appeared the Monegasque star was okay with allowing him pass. It gave him a DRS advantage when they veered onto the main straight, giving Leclerc the ability to regain the lead in Turn 1 of the next lap. 

Two laps later, the Red Bull driver tried to better time his pass, only he broke too hard. Come lap 47, Verstappen was able to make the move stick. 

It was eerily familiar to the Bahrain Grand Prix when Leclerc used similar tactics—letting Verstappen pass at the end of one DRS overtaking zone so the Ferrari driver could have a boost. 

Although Verstappen complained Leclerc did not properly slow down during the yellow flags in the last two laps, Leclerc gave a nod to the Dutchman for what he called a “fair” race.

"Well done to Max, that was nice," Leclerc said on his race radio after finishing.

What happened in the midfield?  

In an unusual turn of events, three different cars retired within seconds of each other—Daniel Ricciardo, Fernando Alonso and Valtteri Bottas. 

Alonso was the first of the trio that bowed out as technical problems ended the Alpine driver's day early, prompting a safety car. Disaster seemed to be contagious on the grid as Ricciardo soon after could be heard over the team radio saying, “I’ve got no drive, I can’t accelerate.”

Ricciardo parked his car at the side of the track near the pits, and Alonso soon coasted a little bit ahead of the Australian, not quite making it down to the pits. 

Bottas, however, was able to make it, but the team was unable to fix his var's issue, ultimately deciding to retire the vehicle. 

Meanwhile, it appears Pierre Gasly, who tallied his first points of the season on Sunday, was battling pain during the final 10 laps. The AlphaTauri driver said in the team recap, “From my side, the last 15 laps were really difficult. I had some pain in my intestine, and it was really difficult to race.”

Should F1 continue to race in Saudi Arabia? 

It is no secret that the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix made some question whether it is okay to compete in Jeddah considering the country's human rights record. And the attack claimed by Houthis rebels in Yemen, who receive military and financial support from Iran, on Friday brought more concern. 

The drivers were on the brink of boycotting this year’s race during Friday night’s meeting, per multiple reports, because a missile attack on a nearby oil depot caused security concerns. 

F1 executives, team bosses and the country’s officials tried to reassure the 20 athletes about the safety of the event, and after more than four hours of listening and discussing, the drivers agreed to carry on as normal. Details of what went on during the meeting have not been publicly released, but some drivers have made it clear that the conversation should be revisited after this weekend. 

When asked whether F1 had to accept the attack as a reality of racing in the country, Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff said in an interview with ESPN, “We just need to understand that this is culturally very different to how we see our western cultures.

“For us, is it acceptable to race 10 miles away from a drone rocket that is going in a petrol tank? Certainly not. But for here, within their culture, these things happen here. I don't want to say that I'm not racing because I am generally someone that wants to give people the chance to better themselves.

“Does Saudi Arabia and some of the other Middle Eastern countries share the same values and culture as we do in Europe? They don’t. Are they where we want them to be? No. Can we by coming here put the spotlight into this place by racing here in Formula One, by making those things visible and therefore making it a better place? I still think so.”

Prior to the attack on Friday, a major talking point for several drivers was the mass execution two weeks ago. The 81 people killed on March 12 was the largest in the kingdom's modern history. Several of the drivers were asked whether they felt comfortable racing in the country. 

“I think it’s clearly concerning to see what is going on in some of these places but I do hope that racing in some of these countries, it does raise awareness, and we can have a positive impact,” Russell said in a Friday press conference. “And I think if Formula One can look back in 15, 20, 30, 40 years’ time, and see that the impact of our sport has had a positive change on society in some of these countries we’re going to, that’s something we should all be incredibly proud about. 

“So, I think you can't ignore these facts. I just hope that with our platform, we are raising the right awareness and we can have a positive change in the long run.”

In an interview with Sky Sports, F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali was asked whether this weekend’s events would raise questions about Saudi Arabia’s spot on the sport’s schedule. 

“No, I think it is not a matter of question marks, it is a matter of understanding the situation for sure,” he said. “We are not blind but we don't have to forget one thing, this country it is also true that Formula One and the sport, we believe is doing massive step forward.

“You cannot pretend to change a culture that is a millennium in a blink of an eye, the resources they are moving in place to move forward, you see here women couldn't drive a couple of years ago, they are achieving it, they are changing a lot of laws to make sure this is happening.

“Of course there is tension, things to improve, we don't want to be political on that, but I believe we are playing a very important role in the modernization of this country, we are focusing on making sure this is at the center of our agenda.”