In a dramatic qualifying on the Jeddah street track, Perez grabbed his second career F1 pole position, 12 months on from his maiden pole which came at the same circuit.
It came after Max Verstappen dropped out of qualifying in Q2 when he suffered a driveshaft failure with his Red Bull, which means he will start the Saudi Arabian GP from 15th place on the grid.
Perez will be joined on the front row by Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso, who qualified third but moves up one spot due to Charles Leclerc’s 10-place grid penalty due to exceeding his permitted use of electronic package in his Ferrari. The penalty pushes Leclerc back to 12th place on the grid.
As a result, a whole host of drivers benefitted from the reliability woes of Verstappen and Leclerc, with George Russell moving up to third for Mercedes and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz in fourth.
Lance Stroll will line up in fifth place for Aston Martin, ahead of Alpine’s Esteban Ocon while Lewis Hamilton will start from seventh place after struggling to extract performance from his Mercedes.
Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing RB19
Photo by: Steven Tee / Motorsport Images
When is the F1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix?
- Date: Sunday 19 March 2023
- Start time: 5:00pm GMT, 8:00pm local time
The 2nd round of the 2023 F1 season, the Saudi Arabian GP at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, gets underway at 8:00pm local time (5:00pm GMT) on Sunday 19 March.
How can I watch Formula 1?
In the United Kingdom Formula 1 is broadcast live on Sky Sports, with highlights shown on Channel 4 several hours after the race has finished. Live streaming through NOW is also available in the UK.
Sky Sports F1, which broadcasts the F1 races, can be added as part of the Sky Sports channels which costs £24 a month for new customers. Sky Sports can also be accessed through NOW with a one-off day payment of £11.98p or a month membership of £34.99p per month.
How can I watch the F1 Saudi Arabian GP?
In the United Kingdom, Sky Sports will be live broadcasting the Saudi Arabian GP, with the race shown live on Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports Main Event. Pre-race coverage will start at 3:30pm on Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports Main Event, ahead of the race start at 5:00pm GMT.
- Channels: Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports Main Event
- Start time: 3:30pm GMT on Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports Main Event, Sunday 19 March 2023
Autosport will be running a live text coverage of the Saudi Arabian GP here.
An aerial view of the action during Qualifying
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