F1 Saudi Arabia GP RECAP: Lewis Hamilton wins after Max Verstappen collision in wild race
SAUDI ARABIAN GRAND PRIX RECAP: Relive a chaotic race with Express Sport's live updates from Jeddah after Lewis Hamilton drew level with Max Verstappen on points in the Drivers' Championship.
Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen will enter the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix level on points next weekend after Hamilton made it three wins from three in a hectic collision-strewn inaugural Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. The race was twice red-flagged due to crashes involving Mick Schumacher and then Nikita Mazepin and George Russell, with Sergio Perez also DNF'ing. But it was Hamilton who eventually emerged triumphant in Jeddah despite colliding with rival Versatppen.
Verstappen went into this race eight points ahead of Hamilton but heads to the finale in Abu Dhabi level with the Briton on 369.5 points.
The Red Bull driver however is ahead in the standings courtesy of owning more race wins, with nine to Hamilton's eight.
The 50-lap Saudi Arabia race was one of the most chaotic in Formula One history due to the multiple crashes, stoppages and safety cars.
You can relive all of the crazy action with Express Sport's live lap-by-lap updates of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix below.
Thanks and goodnight
Right that's us done for the night. Thanks ever so much for joining us for what was a truly insane Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
We'll be back for more in the season-ending Abu Dhabi race next weekend.
There's bound to be plenty more drama before then though, so make sure to keep checking back to Express Sport for all the latest.
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Take care!
Post-race poll
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Have your say here on which way the title is going below.
Wolff's response
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has just been interviewed by Sky Sports F1.
He says: "The driving needs to be assessed and looked at. It's hard, very hard, maybe over the line hard.
"We just want to have a clean championship, may the best man win and if it's Max at the end then I have peace with that. It just needs to be a fair race."
Stewards summon Max and Lewis
BOTH Verstappen and Hamilton have been summoned to the stewards.
That's to discuss their lap-37 tangle.
Will either of them face punishment? We'll wait and see.
Reaction in full
How it finished
Have you got your breath back yet? Me neither.
Here's the final classification.
Final classification after a crazy race in Jeddah \ud83d\udc47#SaudiArabianGP \ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\udde6 #F1 pic.twitter.com/d1pvEnL5Ei
\u2014 Formula 1 (@F1) December 5, 2021
Title rivals speak
Verstappen and Hamilton both speak about their bizarre lap-37 collision.
Max says: "I slowed down! I wanted to let him by. I'm on the right, he didn't want to overtake and then we touched.
"Yeah. I don't really understand what happened there."
While Lewis adds: "I didn't quite understand he all of a sudden hit the brakes quite heavily. I ran into the back of him.
"Then he moved on and I didn't quite understand what was happening. But I got a message afterwards that he was going to let us past. It was a bit confusing."
Constructors' latest
So then, the Constructors' Championship standings are...
Mercedes - 587.5 points
Red Bull - 559.5 points
The Silver Arrows will surely take the team crown next week.
'Get in there Lewis'
"Get in there Lewis! That has got to be the craziest race I remember," Hamilton's engineer says.
The driver responds: "Great job guys, great job. That's more like it. Let's keep pushing!"
Verstappen says: "It is what it is. I tried at least."
Horner responds: "Good effort Max. I don't know why he [Lewis] came up the back of you like that. It made no sense at all."
Bottas takes third
What a finish.
Bottas takes third and it's two Mercedes drivers on the podium either side of Verstappen.
The Fiin took it right at the death, punching the air as he crossed the line. Ocon was not happy in his cockpit.
HAMILTON WINS THE SAUDI ARABIAN GRAND PRIX!
Hamilton reaches the chequered flag and WINS the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
What an absolutely mental race this has been.
We'll go to the season-ending Abu Dhabi race next weekend with Hamilton and Verstappen dead level.
Mercedes have also stretched their lead in the Constructors' Championship too.
Bottas, right at the line, snatches third place from Ocon - he joins Hamilton on the podium!
Can Bottas take third?
Bottas has a couple of laps left here as he desperately tries to get past third-placed Ocon and get on to the podium.
Verstappen is trying to nurse his tyres to the end here and is now nearly 8s back from the race lead.
Hamilton and Verstappen to go level
Wow. Wow. Wow.
Hamilton will enter the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix exactly LEVEL on 369.5 points with Verstappen in the Drivers' Championship.
The Red Bull driver will be ahead in the standings still due to having more race wins.
Hamilton's fastest lap here is currently 1:30.854 and Verstappen is meanwhile saying his rear tyres are gone.
He's told he cannot pit due to his five-second penalty, which would see Ocon jump him into 2nd if he pits.
Hamilton on course for win
"We didn't quite need to do that Max," Verstappen is told.
But it's not quite entirely clear what the Red Bull pitwall are referring to.
The Briton is now 3s clear out in front.
HAMILTON LEADS
It's lap 43 and Hamilton LEADS!
Verstappen looks set to have to settle for P2.
Verstappen hit by time penalty!
Verstappen lets Hamilton by and then immediately takes back P1 at the next corner. Very clevre.
But he's now been hit by a five-second time penalty.
He's got seven laps to build up a huge lead over Hamilton in order to win this race.
Confusion
There's a lot of confusion here.
Is Verstappen being instructed to give the place back?
"Race control have instructed them to give the place back. I don't know if they have told Verstappen yet," Mercedes tell Hamilton.
But the Red Bull still leads the race. The gap has gone from 2.2s to 1.6s but Verstappen hasn't let his title rival go by? What is going on?
What just happened?
Who's fault was that? We'll find out soon.
If it stays this way, the driver's room post-race is going to be very, very interesting.
Further behind, Bottas is past Ricciardo and up into P4 at Turn 1.
LAP 38/50
\u2014 Formula 1 (@F1) December 5, 2021
MAX AND LEWIS COLLIDE!
Verstappen is instructed to give the place to Hamilton, but they make contact \ud83d\ude31#SaudiArabianGP \ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\udde6 #F1 pic.twitter.com/QnRaWoaYzP
What now?
"It was just dangerous driving dude," Hamilton says.
Verstappen continues to lead but the stewards are investigating the incident. Will the Red Bull driver be punished? Will he lose the race lead?
HAMILTON AND VERSTAPPEN COLLIDE!
WOW.
Verstappen is told to give the race lead to Hamilton.
But he slows down in the middle of the track and Hamilton collides with the back of his car, suffering front wing damage.
"He just break tested me," says Hamilton. Perhaps he didn't know Verstappen was slowing to let him go by?
Hamilton and Verstappen tangle!
Hamilton tries to get past Verstappen into Turn 1 after using DRS to close the gap but the Red Bull refuses to yield.
He has the inside line and the pair are both forced off track but Verstappen keeps his lead.
"This guy is f****** crazy man," Hamilton says.
Aaaand it's gone
And just like that, the VSC is gone again and the track is all clear!
Hamilton is so close to Verstappen but it's going to take a mighty effort to get round the Dutchman.
Can he do it? He has 13 laps to do it.
Another VSC
In case you missed it...
We've so far had two red flags, three standing starts, two safety cars and three virtual safety cars.
All of Russell, Perez, Mazepin and Schumacher have crashed out. We're down to 16 of 20 drivers remaining.
Verstappen started P3 but leads the race. Pole-sitter Hamilton is within 1s of his title rival but can he overtake him?
Not yet no. That's because we've got another VSC with another big bit of debris on track. It appeared to be a piece of Aston Martin's car.
Hamilton and Verstappen pushing hard
Those slower laps were actually probably quite helpful for Verstappen, because they extend the life of his medium tyres.
The gap from Hamilton to Verstappen has stretched a bit with the Brit having had to overtake Raikkonen. The pair are absolutely flying round.
What will happen next?
Verstappen unhappy
Verstappen isn't happy that Raikkonen, ahead of him on track but sat P15, isn't going quick enough for his liking.
"Why is Kimi not speeding up?" he asks.
Hamilton is right behind his title rival with the Finn just up track from the pair. Neither can overtake Raikkonen under the VSC.
Verstappen to stretch lead?
As it stands, Hamilton is running second but owns the extra point for the fastest lap.
If Verstappen wins this race and Hamilton keeps that bonus point, the Dutchman will head to Abu Dhabi next Sunday 14 points clear in the Drivers' Championship.
This is a massive final 18 laps.
Alonso wants another safety car
Yep, there we have it. Another VSC to help marshals get those bits of car off different sections of the track.
Cars have to reduce their speed by 35 per cent to allow marshals to run across track.
Alonso says: "We need a safety car."
Can Verstappen hold on?
There's still more than 20 laps to go here.
Hamilton is right on Verstappen's tail but will he find a way to get past him? It's going to be some battle.
There's loads of debris all over the track still, as Alonso reports at Turn 6 and Turn 10. Will we get another VSC?
Tsunoda penalty
Tsunoda has been hit with a five-second time penalty for causing a collision.
Vettel has damage after also colliding with Kimi Raikkonen and has dropped to P13 after spitting some debris out on to the track.
Meanwhile, Alonso has just gone for a huge spin but managed to save himself. He's P14 after Raikkonen pits with front wing damage.
Race order
Time for an update on the order of the 16 drivers we still have out on track...
1) Verstappen, 2) Hamilton, 3) Ocon, 4) Ricciardo, 5) Bottas
6) Gasly, 7) Giovinazzi, 8) Sainz, 9) Leclerc, 10) Stroll
11) Norris, 12) Vettel, 13) Raikkonen, 14) Latifi, 15) Alonso, 16) Tsunoda
Breathless drama
This race has been HECTIC. To say the absolute least.
Feels like there's been a lot more than 24 laps!
The virtual safety car is over but Hamilton is just outside of DRS range. Ocon is eight seconds behind the Briton now.
Virtual safety car
Another trip into the barriers, this time for Yuki Tsunoda after a bit of contact with Aston Martin's Sebastian Vettel.
Tsunoda loses his front wing and his brakes are on fire but he manages to get his car going again, somehow.
There's still going to be a virtual safety car here.
Verstappen out of DRS range
Hamilton just lost eight tenths in the first sector and he's 1.2s behind Verstappen.
The two are well out in front, with Ocon six seconds back in third. That's still a great result for Alpine if they can stay there though.
Problem for Max
Can Verstappen make it to the end of the race on his mediums? Pirelli says the compound is designed to last 30 laps.
"Lack of power guys," reports Verstappen with Hamilton just outside of DRS range.
"Battery is just topping up at this stage Max," Red Bull respond.
Verstappen 1.5s clear
Hamilton sets a new fastest lap, cutting nearly four-tenths out of Verstappen.
The Red Bull is 1.5s ahead at the moment, with Ocon 3.8s behind the leader.
Hamilton up into P2
Hamilton eases past Ocon down the main straight and he's back up to second.
Can he hunt down Versatppen? It was a ruthless move from the REd Bull driver, making his way past Hamilton down the inside into the first corner.
Lights out... again!
The race resumes at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit.
Verstappen LEADS! The Dutchman headed into Turn 1 level with Hamilton and Ocon.
He dives down the inside and Ocon goes off track. He returns to take the lead but Verstappen then makes his way round. Hamilton is P3.
LIGHTS OUT PT. III
\u2014 Formula 1 (@F1) December 5, 2021
Ocon, Hamilton and Verstappen squeeze at Turn 1!
Verstappen gets through and past Ocon, Hamilton drops to third#SaudiArabianGP \ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\udde6 #F1 pic.twitter.com/nEvWarlTno
Back on track!
Here we go, the cars are back out on track for another formation lap.
Verstappen is on the medium tyres with Hamilton sticking to the hards.
It'll be a third standing start of the evening.
Hamilton asks why he's not on new mediums, to which he's told: "We've got 35 laps remaining. This is the correct tyre."
Big chance for Alpine
And breathe! We've had a minute or two to settle now that all that bartering is done with.
This is going to be a huge restart. Can Ocon protect his lead? Can Verstappen get past Hamilton?
Ocon won the Hungarian Grand Prix earlier this year and his team-mate Alonso was third in Qatar in the last race. Can Alpine secure another big result in Jeddah?
Let's just hope we avoid any more crashes.
Madness
Well this is all very hectic.
Red Bull felt Verstappen was pushed off track by Hamilton but they're not being entertained.
No word yet on when the race will restart.
Ocon out front!
"Esteban on one, Lewis two, Max three?" Mercedes say on team radio.
That's the offer now made by the race director.
"If they choose not to accept that, I will refer it to the stewards," Masi says.
Red Bull then confirm they accept. Ocon will start out front with Hamilton and Verstappen 2nd and 3rd.
Masi speaks to Red Bull
We're still only 16 laps into this race - so there's so much drama still to come.
Michael Masi says Verstappen will be given the opportunity to start P2.
Red Bull say they'll get back to the FIA race director in a minute. Where does that leave Hamilton?
Hamilton back on pole?
"We will accept P2 on the basis Ocon is on pole," Red Bull say.
Masi replies: "Sorry, we would drop you back behind Hamilton. Back behind Lewis."
The restart
See that hectic restart for yourself here.
\ud83d\udea9 ANOTHER RED FLAG! \ud83d\udea9
\u2014 Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) December 5, 2021
The race resumed but not for long! \ud83d\ude30
Sergio Perez and Nikita Mazepin have both crashed!!
George Russell is also out!!
\ud83d\udcfa #SaudiArabianGP live on Sky Sports F1#SkyF1 | #F1 pic.twitter.com/wL1u4SptyW
Some ugly collisions
Leclerc tagged Perez's back wheel, sending him spinning into the back wall. That's a big moment in the Constructors' Championship, with Mercedes poised to benefit.
Mazepin meanwhile suffered a very ugly crash in the Haas, going straight into the back of Russell who is also now out of the race.
Hamilton adds: "I had to avoid a collision there."
An illegal overtake?
Hamilton seemed well in front heading into Turn 1, with Verstappen making his way past his rival by going off track.
Will the stewards order the Dutchman to give the place back? Or will they say Hamilton didn't give him enough room?
"He cut across the whole kerb. He just overtook me outside the white line. We should be ahead," says Hamilton.
ANOTHER INCIDENT!
Wow. What drama.
Verstappen momentarily loses his lead to Hamilton but the Briton is soon down to P3, after Ocon gets his way past him.
Behind them, Mazepin is out of the race and Perez has also lost his front wing.
Russell has also come to a stop in his Williams.
Second red flag
"I'm sorry, I couldn't avoid this," says Mazepin.
That's now Schumacher, Mazepin, Perez and Russell all out of the race.
And there's a second red flag.
Back underway
There's another formation lap and then we'll have a second standing start of the race.
"Why's the safety car going so slow? We cannot heat the tyres," says Verstappen on his way round.
"Lewis is leaving way more than 10 cars. That's not OK," he adds with the Briton shown well behind him on track as he seeks to get to the start later, so that his tyres are still warm for the restart.
"There's still more than 10 cars. This is not allowed."
Mercedes' message
Hamilton asks: "So what's the scenario now? What have we got to do?"
He's told by Mercedes' James Vowles: "Everyone's going to go to the end of this race on these hard tyres now but you had car pace at the beginning.
"There's a few options we can throw in there with additional VSCs and Safety Cars.
"The main thing for now is pressure him."
Hamilton's anger
You can hear Hamilton's radio message for yourself here.
Lewis Hamilton is NOT happy \u274c
\u2014 Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) December 5, 2021
How much of an impact will this have on the Championship? \ud83d\udc40
The race will resume at 6.15pm.
\ud83d\udcfa #SaudiArabianGP live on Sky Sports F1#SkyF1 | #F1 pic.twitter.com/gAMNAPlVGs
Verstappen's free stop
This will of course spark the debate: should drivers be allowed a free pitstop when the race is red-flagged?
Hamilton's answer to that question is probably quite obvious...
Cameras meanwhile show footage of Schumacher back in the Haas garage, shaking his head as he stands in front of several screens.
The race will resume at 6.15pm.
\ud83d\udea9 RED FLAG \ud83d\udea9
\u2014 Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) December 5, 2021
\ud83c\udf99\ufe0f "This has played right into Red Bull and Verstappen's hands!"
Drivers return to pits and drivers can change tyres without losing time \ud83d\udc40
\ud83d\udcfa #SaudiArabianGP live on Sky Sports F1#SkyF1 | #F1 pic.twitter.com/dN2XVTxnNT
Hamilton fuming
"The tyre wall looked fine. F***. Find out what the reason for a red flag is," Hamilton says.
"That's unbelievable. The tyre wall looks fine."
The Briton is very frustrated, knowing this race may well have gotten away from him after that red flag.
RED FLAG
The race is red-flagged. What a massive moment in the race, and the championship, that could be.
Presumably they want to repair that barrier that Schumacher crashed into.
When the teams return to the pits, drivers can fit new tyres. That means Verstappen can change his compounds without losing any time. A huge boost for Red Bull.
Verstappen angry
Bottas slowed heavily before finding the pits there and Verstappen was not happy about it.
"That shouldn't be allowed," said Verstappen on team radio.
His engineer wasn't happy either.
Verstappen leads
So Red Bull take a big tactical gamble.
Hamilton and Bottas are behind Verstappen but have both pitted.
Esteban Ocon and Ricciardo complete the top five, but neither of those two have gone into the pits either.
Schumacher crashes!
A big shunt for Mick Schumacher brings out the yellow flags and the first safety car of the race.
"I'm OK. Sorry about that," he replies after finding the wall at the Turn 21 and 22 complex.
Hamilton and Bottas both pit, but Verstappen stays out. He's into the lead of the race.
SAFETY CAR (LAP 10/50)
\u2014 Formula 1 (@F1) December 5, 2021
Mick Schumacher crashes heavily and the Safety Car comes out
He reports he is okay over the radio \ud83d\udc4d#SaudiArabianGP \ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\udde6 #F1 pic.twitter.com/H4mZXyZjMs
Hamilton comfortable
Hamilton 2.5s clear now after being asked to up the pace a bit to help out Bottas behind him.
Verstappen is 1.3s behind Bottas. Leclerc, in fourth, is five seconds behind the Dutchman.
Ricciardo and Sainz on the rise
Ricciardo, thanks to DRS, soars past Gasly before the braking zone at Turn 1.
At the same part of the track, Sainz finds his way past Alonso and is P11. He's up four from where he started now. No driver has made up more positions so far.
DRS is very handy down the start-finish straight.
Alonso drops down
Hamilton is stretching his advantage out in front, now 1.7s clear of Bottas, who is keeping himself out of DRS range of Verstappen.
Alfa Romeo's Antonio Giovinazzi has just got past Alonso to take 10th, who is now under pressure from Sainz.
A lovely overtake from the Italian.
Several big movers
Ferrari's Carlos Sainz is up three from where he started in P15.
Alpine's Fernando Alonso has also made his way up three places and is currently 10th.
Mercedes finding pace
There was contact between Aston Martin's Stroll and Russell. The Canadian had to go into the run-off area.
Out in front, Hamilton is a second and a half ahead of Bottas.
The Finn is just over a second ahead of third-placed Verstappen.
LAP 2/50
\u2014 Formula 1 (@F1) December 5, 2021
Hamilton, Bottas and Verstappen maintain their positions in the top three \ud83d\udc40#SaudiArabianGP \ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\udde6 #F1 pic.twitter.com/V7oTQ0yO76
Russell incident noted
Daniel Ricciardo is also up to ninth from 11th for McLaren.
A Turn 7 incident between Lance Stroll and George Russell has been noted by the stewards.
The Williams driver started 14th but is now running in 17th.
LIGHTS OUT!
We are underway in Jeddah.
The order of the front three stays the same, but Sergio Perez almost collided with Verstappen after a lock-up for the Mexican.
Lando Norris gets past Pierre Gasly and is up to sixth in the McLaren.
AlphaTauri's other driver, Yuki Tsunoda, has also dropped from 8th to 12th.
History sides with Lewis
The formation lap is underway.
Since 2010, the driver on pole at a new circuit has always gone on to win the world championship that same season.
Hamilton started on pole and won in Qatar. He's also on pole here. Can he convert it?
Horner talks
Red Bull boss Christian Horner speaks about Verstappen's gearbox on the grid.
He tells Sky Sports F1: "It's passed all the tests we would normally do. There was no pressure to take additional risks.
"We believe in our measurements and our tools and the analysis that we have. We've got to go for it. Max can still see his main rival just ahead of him.
"He's been driving beautifully this weekend and it's just a great shame yesterday not to convert that lap but there's a lot of racing to be done."
Williams classic takes to the track
Damon Hill has taken one of Williams' most famous cars for a spin in another tribute to Sir Frank.
We're less than 20 minutes away from lights out now in Saudi Arabia.
All good for Max
No problems for Verstappen.
His engineer asks if he had any issues on his way round to the grid, and his simple response is: "Yep."
Ta Todt
A thank you to Jean Todt, the outgoing president of the FIA, too in Jeddah.
Ahead of his last race in attendance as FIA President, @JeanTodt was joined on the grid by all 20 drivers and F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali as a mark of respect
\u2014 Formula 1 (@F1) December 5, 2021
From all of us at F1, thank you Jean for your tireless work and invaluable contribution to this sport we all love pic.twitter.com/RMmrevWaGS
Sir Frank Williams tribute
A poignant tribute to the late Sir Frank Williams from the teams.
A moment's silence at track to remember an F1 legend.
\u2014 McLaren (@McLarenF1) December 5, 2021
Drivers, team members and F1 champions together for Sir Frank Williams. Rest in peace. pic.twitter.com/BLvc5TC6kG
No Verstappen penalty
Despite that qualifying crash, Verstappen's gearbox is thought to be fine and as a result he will not take a grid penalty.
A change would have incurred a five-place grid drop and relegated him to eighth.
Here's the starting grid for today's race.
STARTING GRID: SAUDI ARABIA \ud83d\udea6
\u2014 Formula 1 (@F1) December 4, 2021
Lewis on pole
Max directly behind him in P3
You don't want to miss Lights Out on Sunday!#SaudiArabianGP \ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\udde6 #F1 pic.twitter.com/MGZm3nyypY
Horrible F2 crash
There was a nasty F2 crash before the F1 race in Saudi Arabia, with Enzo Fittipaldi crashing into the back of Theo Pourchaire's stationary car on the starting grid.
The pair have been taken to the King Fahad Armed Forces Hospital but thankfully the FIA have confirmed they are conscious.
The race was red-flagged after Pourchaire, in P3, stalled on the grid and Fittipaldi collided with the back of him.
It is unclear if either have suffered any injuries.
Pourchaire has just given a thumbs up to the crowd as he was loaded into the ambulance, the crowd responded with a huge cheer #F2 #SaudiArabianGP \ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\udde6 pic.twitter.com/NWV8jpd3o6
\u2014 Sean Kelly (@virtualstatman) December 5, 2021
Good evening!
Good evening and welcome to Express Sport's live coverage of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
The race begins at 5.30pm UK time but we've plenty to cover before now and then.