Liam Lawson had the second-longest losing streak of any driver in qualifying heading into the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
He put that to an end by out-qualifying Isack Hadjar and claiming his best starting position of the season so far.
Change from practice to qualifying
Red Bull was the second-fastest team in second practice yesterday, two tenths of a second behind McLaren. That gap was much wider in final practice, where the track conditions were much hotter, but they were back in the hunt as soon as qualifying began.
Gaps between team mates
Lando Norris’s crash in qualifying opened the door for Max Verstappen to beat the McLaren pair to pole position. Oscar Piastri will start second, but Norris had been quicker than him in Q2, the last phase of qualifying where both set times.
As at the previous race, Yuki Tsunoda was further off his team mate than any other driver. Although he reached Q3, he was the best part of a second slower than his pole-winning team mate.
Team mate battles sequences
After 10 consecutive races of being out-qualified by his team mate – whether it was Tsunoda, Verstappen or Isack Hadjar – Lawson finally came out ahead today. Lance Stroll remains the driver with the longest losing streak of anyone in qualifying for grands prix, having been beaten 17 times in a row by Fernando Alonso.
Both Sauber drivers failed to progress beyond Q1 for the third weekend in a row. Gabriel Bortoleto, who missed the crucial second practice session yesterday due to a fuel leak, only reached Q2 at the season-opener.
Out-qualified team mate
| Rank | Driver | Streak |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fernando Alonso | 17 |
| 2 | Max Verstappen | 12 |
| 3 | George Russell | 11 |
| 4 | Pierre Gasly | 8 |
| 5 | Nico Hulkenberg | 4 |
| 6 | Charles Leclerc | 3 |
| 7 | Carlos Sainz Jnr | 2 |
| = | Oscar Piastri | 2 |
| 9 | Oliver Bearman | 1 |
| = | Liam Lawson | 1 |
Out-qualified by team mate
| Rank | Driver | Streak |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lance Stroll | 17 |
| 2 | Jack Doohan | 6 |
| 3 | Andrea Kimi Antonelli | 5 |
| 4 | Gabriel Bortoleto | 4 |
| = | Yuki Tsunoda | 4 |
| 6 | Lewis Hamilton | 3 |
| 7 | Alexander Albon | 2 |
| = | Lando Norris | 2 |
| 9 | Isack Hadjar | 1 |
| = | Esteban Ocon | 1 |
Q1 and Q3
Eliminated in Q1
| Rank | Driver | Streak |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gabriel Bortoleto | 4 |
| 2 | Nico Hulkenberg | 3 |
| = | Lance Stroll | 3 |
| 4 | Esteban Ocon | 1 |
| = | Jack Doohan | 1 |
Reached Q3
| Rank | Driver | Streak |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | George Russell | 16 |
| 2 | Lando Norris | 12 |
| 3 | Oscar Piastri | 9 |
| 4 | Max Verstappen | 8 |
| 5 | Lewis Hamilton | 5 |
| = | Charles Leclerc | 5 |
| 7 | Andrea Kimi Antonelli | 4 |
| 8 | Carlos Sainz Jnr | 2 |
| = | Yuki Tsunoda | 2 |
| = | Pierre Gasly | 2 |
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