Sergio Pérez tried to bring pole position to Red Bull. In this Saturday’s standings (18th), he took advantage of a problem from Max Verstappen to set the fastest time and reach the honorable position on the grid for the second stage of the 2023 Formula 1 season.

For qualifying in Jeddah, Charles Leclerc has already started knowing that he would lose ten places on the grid. The reason is that Ferrari changed several components of the Monegasque’s engine, which has already arrived with the back foot for the second stage.

With night already present in Saudi Arabia, temperatures were more relaxed compared to the third practice. The thermometer showed 26 ºC, while the asphalt reached 32 ºC, the humidity reached 49% and the wind was blowing at 2.5 km/h.

Q1

The lights went out at the end of the pit lane and there was already a line of drivers ready to hit the track. At the top was a Williams, followed by AlphaTauri and Haas also not wanting to waste time.

Competitors were finishing their installation laps, but still without a quick lap. Meanwhile, Nyck de Vries, who did not participate in FP3, spun alone and burned his tires, but avoided a collision.

However, the American lived through an unlikely situation. The competitor had his lap removed due to track limitations at turn 27 – the curious thing is that the Jeddah track is practically just a wall.

All on soft tyres, the times were already displayed on the table. Max Verstappen, with 1min28s761, was first followed by Sergio Pérez, Nico Hülkenberg, George Russell and Charles Leclerc.

Meanwhile, in the elimination zone were five runners still unmarked. They were Pierre Gasly, Esteban Ocon, De Vries, Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll.

Then, at the level of his spin, the double champion of Spain also made a mistake. The Aston Martin holder spun on the acceleration of Turn 2 and therefore still had no time with just over seven minutes to go.

With 1min30s447, Lando Norris was the driver in 15th place and, then, was in the cut zone. Yuki Tsunoda, 16th, was just 0s006 behind rivals McLaren and was first on the list of those who stayed in Q1.

At the end of his lap, Norris scraped the protective wall and then went to the pits. Meanwhile, Logan Sargeant crashed with just over four minutes left but managed to crash into the car and attempted a lap – it was the last.

The first stage of the classification ended and the riders who remained on the way were Tsunoda, Alexander Albon, De Vries, Norris and Sargeant.

Q2

The pilots are already preparing for the start of the second part of the time test. In the queue to leave the pits, Valtteri Bottas, who was at the deadline, was the one pulling the other drivers.

14 minutes from the end of Q2, the Mercedes duo and the Finn from Alfa Romeo were on worn tyres. Meanwhile, Verstappen, Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz were on new compounds.

Alonso was the first to set the fastest lap in 1min28s757, while Sroll came second in 0s493. Shortly after, the Monegasque of Ferrari tried to push the Canadian to take second place.

Then, when the Dutchman Red Bull arrived, he had a scare. The driver wobbled, but managed to control the car and avoid a collision and even said on the radio “great moment”.

Shortly after, the two-time champion came very slowly to the track. It was on his first timed lap and as the rotation rose and fell and when he returned to the pits he immediately left the car and gave up following – he would start 15th.

In the cut zone, therefore, were Zhou Guanyu, Bottas, therefore, the Alfa Romeo duo, Hülkenberg, Verstappen, who could not make a fast turn, and Sainz, who was 16th.

After Q2, therefore, the Haas duo, the Alfa Romeo duo and Verstappen are those who did not reach the top 10. Hülkenberg, 11th, was a distant 0s816 from Gasly, 10th.

The ten drivers who would fight for pole position were Alonso, Leclerc, Sainz, Esteban Ocon, Gasly, Pérez, Stroll, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton.

As Q3 unfolded, Verstappen explained to band reporter Mariana Becker what had happened to RB19. Although he was unable to elaborate on whether it was the new gearbox, he pointed out that it was an issue with the half shaft.

With just under eight minutes remaining, Leclerc took the lead for the first time all weekend. The Ferrari driver clocked 1min28s757, followed by Russell and Alonso.

Q3

The ten drivers who would fight for pole position were Alonso, Leclerc, Sainz, Esteban Ocon, Gasly, Pérez, Stroll, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton.

As Q3 unfolded, Verstappen explained to band reporter Mariana Becker what had happened to RB19. Although he was unable to elaborate on whether it was the new gearbox, he pointed out that it was an issue with the half shaft.

With just under eight minutes remaining, Leclerc took the lead for the first time all weekend. The Ferrari driver clocked 1min28s757, followed by Russell and Alonso.

On the radio soon after, Russell asked the engineers to check the car for damage. The reason is that the Briton went “a little more aggressively” on the pavement at Turn 10.

Five minutes before the checkered flag and Pérez was on provisional pole with 1min28s265, a good 0s492 behind Charles, second. Russell, Alonso, Hamilton, Ocon, Sainz, Gasly, Piastri and Stroll complete the top 10.

After a brief stop for adjustments and new tyres, all the competitors were back on track for the last attempts at a fast lap.

Stroll was in a spin and very fast, however, even after two good sectors he failed in the last sector in Saudi Arabia and was in fifth place.

In the end, it was Pérez who took pole position, with Leclerc taking second but having to pay a ten-place penalty. Alonso, Russell and Sainz complete the top five.

Ranking of the Saudi Arabian Formula 1 GP 2023:

1) Sergio Pérez (Red Bull/Honda RBPT), 1’28.265
2) Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin/Mercedes), 1’28.730
3) George Russell (Mercedes), 1’28.857
4) Carlos Sainz Jr. (Ferrari), 1’28.931
5) Lance Stroll (Aston Martin/Mercedes), 1’28.945
6) Esteban Ocon (Alpine/Renault), 1’29.078
7) Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), 1’29.223
8) Oscar Piastri (McLaren/Mercedes), 1’29.243
9) Pierre Gasly (Alpine/Renault), 1’29.357
10) Nico Hulkenberg (Haas/Ferrari), 1’29.451
11) Zhou Guanyu (Alfa Romeo/Ferrari), 1’29.461
12) Charles Leclerc (Ferrari), 1’28.420*
13) Kevin Magnussen (Haas/Ferrari), 1’29.517
14) Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo/Ferrari), 1’29.668
15) Max Verstappen (Red Bull/Honda RBPT), 1’49.953
16) Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri/Honda RBPT), 1’29.939
17) Alexandre Albon (Williams/Mercedes), 1’29.994
18) Nyck de Vries (AlphaTauri/Honda RBPT), 1’30.244
19) Lando Norris (McLaren/Mercedes), 1’30.447
20) Logan Sargeant (Williams/Mercedes), 2’08.510
* 10 position penalty for power unit component change