Saudi Arabia GP: Max Verstappen takes pole, 18-year-old Oliver Bearman 11th
Teenager Ollie Bearman celebrated becoming the youngest British driver in Formula One history by qualifying 11th in his Ferrari for Saturday’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
Bearman, 18 years and 10 months to the day, was thrown into the deepest of ends as a last-minute stand-in for Carlos Sainz, who was hospitalised with appendicitis.
But the Essex teenager, with just one hour of practice under his belt, and having never driven an F1 machine at night, came within 0.036 seconds of toppling Lewis Hamilton and progressing to Q3.
Max Verstappen put Red Bull’s continued off-track woes to one side by taking pole position, with Charles Leclerc second, three tenths back, and Sergio Perez third.
Fernando Alonso took fourth, with George Russell and Hamilton seventh and eighth respectively for Mercedes. Hamilton was nearly one second slower than Verstappen.
Probably to Christian Horner’s relief, all eyes were off Red Bull and on Ferrari as Bearman followed in the footsteps of Britain’s first F1 champion Mike Hawthorn, and John Surtees – the only man to win a world title on two and four wheels.
He is the 12th British driver to race for Ferrari – and the first Englishman since Nigel Mansell in 1990. Lewis Hamilton will become the 13th next year.
In Jeddah on Friday, Bearman took to the same asphalt as the men who share nine world championships between them. And, remarkably, he came within a hair’s breadth of beating Hamilton.
Forced to abort his first run in Q2, Bearman returned to the track and hauled his Ferrari into 11th. He needed to be 10th to make it into Q3.
With the clock ticking down, Bearman geared up for his final run, and rode his Ferrari on rails in a valiant attempt to force his way through. His father David, the millionaire founder and CEO of the (re)insurance Aventum Group, was living every minute of his teenage son’s adventure at the back of the Ferrari garage.
Hamilton, failing to improve, afforded Bearman, 21 years the Mercedes’ man’ junior, a chance to beat him, only to come up agonisingly short. The Ferrari junior finished less than six tenths behind Leclerc – a commendable effort – in the other scarlet machine.
PA Sport
Verstappen takes Jeddah pole: as it happened
06:25 PM GMT
That was a great lap from Verstappen, in fairness
"It was a bit like the failed '21 lap, but then of course I made it to the last corner!" 😂
Max Verstappen on claiming his FIRST pole in Jeddah 🆕 pic.twitter.com/AqoTMRHK5v— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) March 8, 2024
06:24 PM GMT
Oliver Bearman speaks to Sky Sports F1
Of course not the kind of ideal situation, I feel sorry for Carlos and wish him the best. A bit disappointed with everything but it was a fun day out there. I think especially the fact that the track is evolving so much... the track develops a lot but the grip level is incredible.
After my first lap I was shocked. In F2 you drive at the limit of the car but in F1 you drive at the limit of the driver. At the moment not so proud, the race in me knows that the car was quick enough to be in Q2... when I look back in a couple of days I’ll be quite proud of what I have done today.
06:20 PM GMT
Perez thinks it’ll be a good race
He won here last year...
"I think it's going to be a long fun race with plenty of action" ⚔
Checo on starting P3 tomorrow 👇 pic.twitter.com/00mnq1MsO3— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) March 8, 2024
06:14 PM GMT
No further action against Bearman
That means he will begin the race tomorrow in 11th at worst, unless there are any penalties for the drivers in front of him.
06:10 PM GMT
Is anyone getting bored of this yet?
In fairness Verstappen didn’t take pole position at 10 rounds last year... but I mean, come on. How are we going to do this for 24 rounds this season? And it’s in the race where he is even stronger. Anyway, let’s try not to get too negative. Second, third and fourth were within 0.055sec which is something but as I have written many times - who really cares about that? Podiums shouldn’t really bother those drivers, wins should.
06:08 PM GMT
Q3 - Classification
VER 1:27.472
LEC +0.319
PER +0.335
ALO +0.374
PIA +0.617
NOR +0.660
RUS +0.844
HAM +0.988
TSU +1.075
STR +1.100
06:07 PM GMT
Q3 ends - Max Verstappen takes pole!
I don’t think it was under any doubt after those first runs. Good attempts from Leclerc and Alonso but they are still three-tenths behind Verstappen. Hmmmm.
06:07 PM GMT
Q3 - Alonso with a decent first sector
Perez does not improve from his second attempt but should be on the front row unless Leclerc or Alonso can disrupt him...
Leclerc does beat Perez to the front row... and what of Alonso? He stays fourth... 0.374sec off Verstappen. Stroll in 10th.
06:06 PM GMT
Q3 - Hamilton only goes seventh...
Nearly a whole second off the pace. Norris moves fourth, that’s OK but still a big chunk down on Verstappen. Piastri beats Norris!
Alonso begins his hot lap having been given a big tow by Hamilton...
06:05 PM GMT
Q3 - Hamilton is nearly seven-tenths behind Verstappen...
...in the first sector alone! Russell isn’t going to improve because he’s two seconds down at the same point. Decent lap from Norris who is a tenth off Verstappen’s pace.
Verstappen with a 31.804 in sector one which isn’t too much faster than Norris.
06:04 PM GMT
Q3 - Final runs getting under way
Do I foresee a situation where it’s clear that nobody is going to beat Verstappen so he backs out without even completing his lap? Maybe.
06:02 PM GMT
Some big gaps there
A big variation in how fresh each driver’s tyres were in those runs.
06:00 PM GMT
Q3 - Order and gaps after the first runs
VER 1:27.472
PER +0.335
ALO +0.516
LEC +0.800
RUS +0.844
PIA +0.853
NOR +1.150
STR +1.316
HAM +1.335
TSU +1.501
05:59 PM GMT
Q3 - Leclerc finishes his lap...
He goes fourth. 0.8sec down. Ouch. Nobody is beating Red Bull here today, are they? And then I worry about tomorrow...
05:59 PM GMT
Q3 - Alonso second, but within two tenths of Perez
Verstappen is on an absolute flyer though. He crosses the line with a 1:27.472 to go fastest.... that is a mega lap. Half a second quicker than Alonso!
05:58 PM GMT
Q3 - Hamilton with a 1:28.807
Russell smashes that by nearly half a second! Piastri just 0.009sec slower than Russell but a few tenths faster than his team-mate. Norris was on the used tyres, though.
Perez blows them all out of the water... by half a second....
05:54 PM GMT
Q3 begins: 12 minutes to go...
...as we go, go, go.
05:54 PM GMT
Right, onto Q3 now
Will Verstappen take pole? Yes, probably. Will he do it comfortably. I don’t think so. Pretty close towards the end of Q2.
05:53 PM GMT
Bearman under investigation
In essence for going to slowly at some point. I hope he doesn’t get a penalty but it is difficult for a rookie on a track like this, where it is high speed and with lots of pitfalls with drivers on hot, in and out laps all at the same time.
05:51 PM GMT
So, so close from Bearman
He apologises to his team after they tell him it was a good lap. It was. It really was. Well, his target for tomorrow will be bringing it home and scoring a few points. And that is definitely on the cards.
"That was a good lap" "Sorry" 💔
Ollie Bearman was so close to making Q3 on his F1 debut and will start P11 in tomorrow's race 😮 pic.twitter.com/k8PuyPOt4W— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) March 8, 2024
“Yeah, that was a messy session. Sorry about that,” he says when he’s back in the garage.
05:49 PM GMT
Q2 - Classification
VER 1:28.033
LEC +0.079
ALO +0.089
PIA +0.310
RUS +0.415
PER +0.434
NOR +0.446
TSU +0.531
STR +0.545
HAM +0.573
ELIMINATED:BEA
ALB
MAG
RIC
HUL
05:47 PM GMT
Q2 - Bearman crosses the line in 11th!
Just 0.036sec off making it in, though! Hamilton scrapes through...
Hamilton backs off on his lap. “I couldn’t improve mate. Feels like I got no grip, mate,” he says to Peter Bonnington.
05:46 PM GMT
Q2 - Bearman with a decent middle sector
Let’s see what he can do in the third and final sector. Ricciardo stays 14th. A chance for Bearman to get into Q3 here...
05:46 PM GMT
Q2 - Albon improves but only to 12th
Russell sets the fastest middle sector as Piastri goes fourth, 0.265sec off Verstappen. Bearman does his best first sector... as Russell goes fifth as he crosses the line.
05:45 PM GMT
Q2 - How it stands
VER 1:28.078
ALO +0.044
LEC +0.101
NOR +0.401
PIA +0.405
PER +0.461
STR +0.500
RUS +0.530
TSU +0.581
HAM +0.602
ELIMINATION ZONE:BEA
MAG
RIC
AL
HUL
05:44 PM GMT
Q2 - A better middle sector from Bearman
He was strong in the final sector in Q1. Norris goes fourth, just 0.004sec faster than Piastri.
Bearman 11th, so will need to improve if he wants to make it through into Q3. He made a bit of a mess of the esses at high-speed and probably cost him a few tenths. Looks like he touched the wall onto the way in too towards the end of the lap. There is time to be found.
05:42 PM GMT
Q2 - Piastri with a decent lap
He’s in 10th so needs to improve really. He loses a bit of time in the middle sector but will improve here. He crosses the line and moves fourth, four-tenths off Verstappen’s time.
Norris about to cross the line. Bearman not having the best lap, either.
05:40 PM GMT
Q2 - Drivers in the drop zone
Magnussen, Ricciardo, Albon, Bearman and Hulkenberg. Bearman has not set a time and Hulkenberg will not set one, retiring from the session.
05:40 PM GMT
Q2 - Verstappen going well
But Alonso is going even better. Perez crosses the line to go fastest with Russell not too far behind.
What can Alonso do? He goes second... but not by much! Just 0.044sec in it. Four tenths ahead of Perez in third, though.
Leclerc is about to cross the line and he goes third, just over a tenth behind Verstappen. That is encouraging considering Leclerc was on used tyres and Verstappen and Alonso were on fresh ones.
05:38 PM GMT
Q2 - A bit of a messy start to the lap for Bearman
He goes too deep early on and then locks up, aborting his hot lap. Verstappen then sets the fastest first sector of anyone but Alonso then beats that by a small margin.
05:35 PM GMT
Q2 - Session is about to resume
It should be possible to get two runs in here. Bearman looks like he’s going out on a new set of soft tyres.
05:32 PM GMT
Q2 - Order as it stands under the red flag
RUS 1:26.608
NOR +0.035
HAM +0.072
PIA +0.310
MAG +35.671
Nobody else has set a time.
10min58sec on the clock.
05:30 PM GMT
Q2 - Hamilton with a 1:28.680
Russell crosses the line and is 0.072 faster. Yellow flags finally come out...
And then the red flag comes out. Why did it take so long for the yellows?! Hulkenberg is told to switch off the car.
Hulkenberg has pulled off the track at Turn 8
"I've lost power" he reports over the radio 😖
And we have a red flag 🚩#F1 #SaudiArabianGP pic.twitter.com/2ojXYr4ld5— Formula 1 (@F1) March 8, 2024
05:29 PM GMT
Q2 - Hulkenberg on the radio
I’ve lost the power. I’ve lost the power, something’s wrong.
05:29 PM GMT
Q2 - The first hot laps are under way
There’s a car off track somewhere. Is it Hulkenberg? We saw it on the overhead replay of George Russell’s lap. No yellow flags, why?
05:27 PM GMT
Q2 begins
15 minutes to go. 15 drivers in it, five will be eliminated and 10 go through to the Q3 shootout. Will Bearman be one of them? Maybe...
🟢 Q2 GREEN LIGHT 🟢
20 drivers become 15... and we go again! 👉#F1 #SaudiArabianGP pic.twitter.com/XK3TYAGBme— Formula 1 (@F1) March 8, 2024
05:21 PM GMT
Q1 - Classification
VER 1:28.171
STR +0.079
LEC +0.147
PER +0.467
ALO +0.535
RUS +0.578
PIA +0.584
NOR +0.634
BEA +0.813
TSU +0.817
HAM +0.823
HUL +0.884
RIC +0.94
MAG +0.898
ALB +0.936
05:20 PM GMT
Q1 ends - Bearman is through, comfortably
Bottas, Ocon, Gasly, Sargeant and Zhou are out.
05:19 PM GMT
Q1 - Ricciardo on the cusp of elimination here
He’s in 15th and needs to find some time. Verstappen goes fastest by 0.147sec ahead of Leclerc.
Ricciardo into 11th... is that good enough? Maybe, maybe not. Stroll in danger here but he is on a good lap with the fastest middle sector.
Bearman has aborted his flying lap as Stroll goes second fastest. Ocon does not improve and is out in Q1. I think Bottas has aborted his run, confirming his exit, too...
05:18 PM GMT
Q1 - Drop zone as it stands
TSU, GAS, SAR, OCO, ZHO.
Final flying runs are starting, though some like Sargeant’s are ending. He stays 18th which means he is out.
05:17 PM GMT
Q1 - Zhou emerges from the pit lane
Sauber have done well to get his car out after that crash in FP3.
05:16 PM GMT
Q1 - Leclerc goes fastest of anyone
As Bottas moves up to 14th. I do not think that will be enough to get him through to Q2. 0.173sec the gap between Leclerc and Verstappen in second now.
05:16 PM GMT
Q1 - Four minutes remain
Hamilton has struggled for much of the weekend so far. Russell looks to have the upper hand so far in Jeddah.
05:13 PM GMT
Q1 - Hamilton moves into P8
That’s behind Bearman. What does Russell do? Fourth, and 0.245sec ahead of his team-mate.
05:13 PM GMT
Q1 - Replays show Piastri really clunked the wall
Bearman got a bit wobble on and lost a bit of time but avoided any contact with the concrete. Mercedes have tried to get through on mediums but have now moved onto the softs but aren’t really showing much pace. They are just above the elimination zone which contains: Gasly, Sargeant, Bottas, Ocon and Zhou who has yet to take to the track.
05:12 PM GMT
Q1 - Top 10 and gaps as it stands
VER 1:28.491
LEC +0.177
ALO +0.215
PIA +0.264
PER +0.270
NOR +0.314
BEA +0.493
MAG +0.578
ALB +0.616
STR +0.639
05:11 PM GMT
Q1 - Perez can’t beat Piastri’s time
0.006sec in it. Verstappen will surely beat it though and he does by a quarter of a second. Alonso is challenging him, though...
The Spaniard crosses the line in third, behind Leclerc and Verstappen. Not a great deal in it.
05:10 PM GMT
Q1 - Bearman moves up to fourth!
...and that is with the fastest final sector of anyone, just 0.229sec off Piastri’s time overall and faster than team-mate Leclerc by 0.02sec.
Verstappen is on a flyer, though.
05:09 PM GMT
Q1 - Piastri clips the wall on the end of his lap?
Well, if he did it wasn’t a big hit as he moves fastest ahead of Norris by half a tenth. Bearman looks to be improving on his second timed lap...
05:08 PM GMT
Q1 - Piastri goes fastest in the first sector
Second hot lap on these tyres and he’s nearly two-tenths up on Alonso after two sectors.
05:06 PM GMT
Q1 - Norris cannot beat Hulkenberg, either
Fernando Alonso does, by nearly three-tenths. What can Bearman do? He is about to cross the line and goes 10th which is slowest of anyone who has set a representative lap time, 1.260sec off Alonso’s time.
Stroll then slots into second ahead of Hulkenberg but 0.254sec off team-mate Alonso.
05:05 PM GMT
Q1 - Great camera angle from the TV pictures
It’s a new-for-2024 camera, I think but every time Norris goes into a corner I think the rear end is going to step out...
Hulkenberg crosses the line with a 1:29.173, 0.355sec faster than his team-mate. Piastri in the McLaren cannot beat that, though he is close.
05:03 PM GMT
Q1 - Bearman is out there
First Qualifying in @f1 for @OllieBearman, let's go!!#SaudiArabianGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/2iW78lyCbf
— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) March 8, 2024
He only got one soft-tyre hot lap in qualifying so this will be a steep learning curve. He has a bit more time to ease himself into this but conditions are different.
05:01 PM GMT
GREEN LIGHT: Q1 begins
Plenty of drivers queuing at the end of the pit lane as they wait for the session to begin.
04:57 PM GMT
It’s nearly time...
Good luck, Ollie 🤞#F1 #SaudiArabianGP pic.twitter.com/Wu1pk5N0qJ
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 8, 2024
This weekend is the opportunity for Bearman to really put his hat in the ring for an F1 seat in 2025. He still could have a strong F2 season and that would help, too, but a strong showing here would really be the ideal ticket.
04:55 PM GMT
Right, just about five minutes until we begin
Here is my prediction for the top six:
VER
PER
RUS
LEC
NOR
ALO
Bearman in 12th, I think. Which would not be too bad at all.
04:47 PM GMT
An update on conditions as we approach qualifying in Jeddah
#F1 #BBCF1 #SAUDIARABIANGP QUALIFYING: It's 15 minutes to Q1, with air temp 25.2C & the track 31.9C. The northwesterly wind has decreased lately (previously gusting to 25mph earlier in the past hour) & will continue to reduce through the rest of this evening. Dry; no risk of rain
— Ian Fergusson (@fergieweather) March 8, 2024
04:44 PM GMT
It has been a bit of a strange weekend so far for Mercedes and McLaren
McLaren are either struggling or holding something back (as they sometimes do) whilst the Mercedes drivers have diverged in their set-ups again. I would suggest this is not a particularly good sign but then again in these early rounds it will all be about understanding their new concept car and how it performs. We’re not even two full races in yet so let us not get too carried away with negativity.
04:36 PM GMT
Current constructor standings
Red Bull with a 100 per cent win rate so far. I wonder if they can keep that going all season? They came close last year.
04:31 PM GMT
Before FP3 I wrote what I thought a “good” performance from Bearman would be
I said that if he finishes qualifying within a second of team-mate Leclerc he will have done well. After FP3 I expect him to do that, or at least he has shown that he has the tools to do that. Is getting into Q3 too much of a task? I think yes, probably, but it might be close.
04:25 PM GMT
Current driver standings after one round
04:21 PM GMT
What time does qualifying start?
Qualifying for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix begins at 5pm GMT under lights in Jeddah. As with the Bahrain Grand Prix last week the schedule is operating on a Thursday/Friday/Saturday “weekend” so qualifying is today and the grand prix itself is tomorrow.
04:15 PM GMT
Comment: Red Bull are taking everyone for fools
Only when Christian Horner was asked if he felt any sympathy for his female accuser did he truly display his anger. It seemed a reasonable enough question: after all, the woman who made allegations of controlling conduct against him – claims since dismissed – had just been suspended by Red Bull without the slightest explanation. In the spirit of “looking to the future”, the mantra he parroted ad nauseam during his latest awkward press conference, could he not offer a note of conciliation? Think again. Instead, he turned his answer into a soliloquy about how gruelling the experience had been for him.
04:12 PM GMT
Some (good) news for Sainz and Ferrari, I guess
Update on @Carlossainz55:
Carlos is out of surgery. Everything went well and he is now resting at the hospital. We're sending him our full support for a quick recovery 🙏 pic.twitter.com/m3ZoXXzBPQ— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) March 8, 2024
04:08 PM GMT
A famous footballing face in the paddock
Zlatan is in the paddock. Not sure who he is with but one of his most famous quotes involved Ferrari: “When you buy me, you are buying a Ferrari. If you drive a Ferrari you put premium fuel in the tank, you drive onto the motorway and you floor the accelerator. Guardiola filled up with diesel and went for a spin in the countryside. If that’s what he wanted, he should have bought himself a Fiat from the start.”
03:54 PM GMT
FP3 recap: Bearman makes strong start to life as an F1 driver
British teenager Oliver Bearman made an impressive start for Ferrari as he stepped in to deputise for an ill Carlos Sainz.
The 18-year-old will become the third youngest driver to start a Formula One grand prix in Saturday’s Saudi Arabia Grand Prix. He was not overawed by the occasion as he stepped into the SF24 for the first time in final practice in Jeddah.
The British Ferrari academy driver – and Haas reserve – finished third practice in 10th and within a tenth of a second of Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton.
Bearman, who was competing in the F2 championship in Jeddah this weekend, has been given a rare opportunity to showcase his talents on the biggest stage after Sainz was diagnosed with appendicitis and was sent for surgery on Friday morning.
Bearman completed 17 laps for Ferrari in a session that was disrupted as Zhou Guanyu crashed into the barriers, bringing out the red flag. Max Verstappen topped the timesheets overall ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and his Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez. George Russell was fourth for Mercedes and Lando Norris fifth.
The real test of Bearman’s skills will be in qualifying (at 5pm GMT) at the high-speed and occasionally perilous Jeddah Corniche Circuit.
02:57 PM GMT
That is it for our final practice coverage
Qualifying begins at 5pm GMT this evening and we will be here for all of the build-up in a little over an hour. It should be a fascinating session. I’m quite excited to see what Bearman can do. Join us again then.
02:46 PM GMT
Toto Wolff on Hamilton’s and Russell’s set-ups
Lewis has been trying more downforce to see what it does for him. It’s now to sit down in the debrief and see what’s better. The bouncing is a little bit better but obviously if you don’t have the confidence through these high-speed corners you are always going to lack and this is a specific weakness of ours. I don’t think we’re in the fight for a race, Max is in a league of his own at least that is what the long runs show.
He thinks it will be the two Red Bulls, Ferrari and then a fight between McLaren, his team and Aston Martin behind.
02:43 PM GMT
That is a good session from Bearman
Will have done his confidence the world of good. Not sure that he needs it but a session with no major errors is exactly what is required. I am sure that he would have liked a few more than the 22 laps he completed and especially so more than the five laps he did on the soft tyres (and just one push lap) but I reckon he might make it out of Q1... and maybe even more?
02:38 PM GMT
FP3 - Classification
VER 1:28.412
LEC +0.196
PER +0.494
RUS +0.552
NOR +0.559
ALO +0.626
STR +0.715
PIA +0.801
HAM +0.856
BEA +0.894
MAG +1.073
GAS +1.134
TSU +1.160
OCO +1.163
HUL +1.263
RIC +1.328
ALB +1.396
BOT +1.671
ZHO +2.327
SAR (NO TIME)
02:36 PM GMT
FP3 ends - Verstappen fastest
Then Leclerc, Perez, Russell and Norris. Not sure we got a true read of the picture there in terms of lap time but that top four is what I expect the top four to be later in qualifying.
Bearman ends the session in a respectable tenth, less than a tenth of a second off Lewis Hamilton.
02:32 PM GMT
FP3 - Verstappen does not actually improve
He’s 0.010sec off his previous best. Leclerc slots into second, 0.2sec behind him with Perez in third and Russell fourth, just over half a second off the pace.
02:31 PM GMT
FP3 - Bearman is 0.454sec off Verstappen’s lap after one sector
And loses another couple of tenths in the middle sector before running wide in the next sector. He will complete the lap but this will not be a great improvement for him.
He ends up about nine-tenths down from Verstappen’s previous best though the Dutchman is about to improve, I suspect...
02:29 PM GMT
FP3 - Magnussen gets lairy at the end of his lap
He does not improve. Ollie Bearman begins his first - and only - qualifying simulation lap before the actual qualifying session later this afternoon.
02:27 PM GMT
FP3 - Session resumes
Magnussen leads them out but Bearman is there too, on the soft tyres.
Here is the current top 10:
VER 1:28.412
LEC +0.794
ALO +1.061
MAG +1.073
PER +1.120
RUS +1.227
ALB +1.396
NOR +1.415
HUL +1.541
PIA +1.646
02:24 PM GMT
SESSION TO RESUME AT 2.25PM GMT
We will get five minutes of very frantic running...
02:24 PM GMT
Watch: Zhou loses it and crashes heavily
A massive crash for Zhou Guanyu 😲💥
Thankfully the Sauber driver confirms he's okay on the radio and is out of the car 📻 pic.twitter.com/M3LuwTtbZE— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) March 8, 2024
02:23 PM GMT
FP3 - Eight minutes remain
We should be able to get some action before the session ends... 17 laps for Bearman in 14th so far. Not what he’d want, a lengthy stoppage. He’d probably want to bolt on the softs and give it plenty as we head into qualifying later on today... he has yet to run on the softs. He will be itching to go...
02:20 PM GMT
Red Bull sister team’s International Women’s Day tribute on car as Christian Horner row rumbles on
Red Bull’s sister team will qualify for Saturday’ Saudi Arabian Grand Prix with the names of its female staff on its cars following the suspension of Christian Horner’s accuser from her job.
The gesture by Visa Cash App RB, part of its attempts to mark International Women’s Day, risks piling pressure on Red Bull Racing to come clean about why action has been taken against the woman who raised a formal grievance against Horner.
Read more from Ben Rumsby here.
02:17 PM GMT
Audi to complete full takeover
Speaking of Sauber, he is some news from Lawrence Barretto:
Audi have decided to significantly up their investment in F1, the board voting to complete a full takeover of Sauber Group. Seidl will become Audi F1 Team CEO - and the face of the operation, as planned. Audi will enter their own PU in 2026. #F1
— Lawrence Barretto (@lawrobarretto) March 8, 2024
02:16 PM GMT
Zhou lost the rear at the high-speed turn seven
He then went backwards/sideways into the wall.
Red Flag 🟥
Zhou crashes into the barriers at Turn 8 💥 pic.twitter.com/6NbItnQfVe— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) March 8, 2024
02:15 PM GMT
RED FLAG
Zhou is in the wall! 16min43sec on the clock. Will we see action again? It’s not an enormous crash. Not yet sure what happened but his session for Sauber is over and the rear is a bit of a mess. As is the left-side. Might be a stretch to make qualifying.
02:12 PM GMT
FP3 - Verstappen puts a lot of time between himself and Leclerc
A 1:28.412 means he is now nearly 0.8sec clear of Leclerc in second...
02:09 PM GMT
FP3 - Verstappen says he hit something at T10
Not the wall but he thinks some other item. A plastic bottle or something. Leclerc in the Ferrari picked up a few carrier bags in FP1 yesterday.
02:06 PM GMT
FP3 - Bearman updates
He is now just focusing on long-runs. He is on lap 16 which is more than anyone else. Lando Norris looks like setting a good lap but bails out in the final sector.
It’s Verstappen from Leclerc and (yes) Magnussen at the top. Pretty big gaps between them: 0.3 between VER and LEC and 0.6 pretty much between LEC and MAG.
02:04 PM GMT
FP3 - Some changes for Mercedes today, then
A busy start to FP3. After overnight changes to the car both drivers are working through our programme 💪 pic.twitter.com/pY7BQQY6N7
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) March 8, 2024
Hamilton appeared to be generally unhappy with the set-up in FP1 and FP2. Both drivers complained of a loose rear end yesterday.
Meanwhile Sargeant clips the wall with the front left and now says he “cannot turn right”. He comes into the pits as his team work on the car. He needs to cut out those types of errors if he wants to remain in F1. I suspect that this will be his last season.
02:01 PM GMT
FP3 - Top 10 and gaps at half-way
VER 1:28.893
LEC +0.313
PER +0.639
RUS +0.969
HUL +1.060
NOR +1.064
MAG +1.182
ALB +1.199
HAM +1.360
BEA +1.384
02:00 PM GMT
FP3 - Heavy fuel run for Bearman it seems
Verstappen is fastest in the first sector and is then 0.234sec up after two which suggests a new best of the session.
01:57 PM GMT
FP3 - Leclerc does indeed top the timesheets with that lap
His time of 1:29.206 is 0.356sec faster than Perez. Bearman now circulating on a set of medium tyres and has moved down to eighth.
01:56 PM GMT
FP3 - 36 mins remain
Here’s how it currently stands though I wouldn’t read too much into this as it’s a mixture of tyres and settings, as ever.
PER
VER
RUS
LEC
HAM
HUL
BEAR
ALB
GAS
ZHO
TSU
BOT
RIC
OCO
Yes, it’s a Red Bull 1-2... Leclerc has just gone fastest in the first sector, though so could change that.
01:53 PM GMT
Oliver Bearman profile: New British star at Ferrari is not Lewis Hamilton – it’s an Essex teenager
Bearman will replace Carlos Sainz for the Scuderia at the Saudi Arabia GP, after the Spaniard fell ill with appendicitis. Read more about him here.
01:51 PM GMT
FP3 - Russell now leads the way
Leclerc not too far behind him, 0.146sec in fact. Only nine drivers have set a lap time, however. Verstappen has not even ventured onto the track, though Perez is starting a timed lap on the soft tyres. Mercedes prioritising using the soft tyres at the moment.
01:48 PM GMT
FP3 - 43 mins to go
Ricciardo doing a lap in the RB and he crosses a line in seventh. Leclerc comes out in the other Ferrari for his first laps.
01:46 PM GMT
FP3 - We haven’t had many timed laps
But Hamilton has just gone fastest. Here is the current order:
HAM 1:30.253
BEA +0.024
RUS +0.077
BOT +0.517
ZHO +1.394
Nobody else has set a lap time.
01:43 PM GMT
FP3 - Bottas moves fastest
But Bearman is improving though doesn’t really ace the final corner. Still, he improves to go fastest with a 1:30.277. Nice work young man.
01:40 PM GMT
FP3 - Bearman improves
He stays third of Hamilton, Bottas and himself but is now within half a second of the leader, having completed five laps.
01:38 PM GMT
FP3 - Hamilton out on a set of softs
Bearman is told to “take his time” in the car and to build up rhythm. Makes sense. He is on his fourth lap so far as Hamilton goes fastest of the three cars to set a time with a 1:30.793.
01:35 PM GMT
FP3 - Bottas posts a 1:31.307
Let’s see how Bearman does in comparison. He crosses the line 1.8sec off which is not too bad at all at a first go.
01:32 PM GMT
FP3 - Indeed Bearman makes it out of the pit lane after Bottas
He goes out on medium compound tyres for what will likely be an installation lap or two.
FP3 is underway, featuring Ollie Bearman's Ferrari debut 🚦🟥 pic.twitter.com/p62D3uEaV5
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) March 8, 2024
01:31 PM GMT
FP3 - First car out there is Valtteri Bottas
Suspect it will not be long before we see Bearman, all things being well.
01:30 PM GMT
GREEN LIGHT: FP3 begins!
Who is the first car at the end of the pitlane?
01:29 PM GMT
Bearman wants an F1 seat
And possibly even as soon as next year. Can he make his mark in an unexpected Ferrari debut? It will be tough but there is more than one way to impress...
All eyes on @OllieBearman as he prepares to make his F1 debut 👀
The 18-year-old is the youngest-ever Ferrari rookie #F1 #SaudiArabianGP pic.twitter.com/bjsOMa0TtJ— Formula 1 (@F1) March 8, 2024
01:25 PM GMT
Still an interesting session regardless of Bearman, though
The Mercedes looked good in the hands of Russell yesterday and the Aston Martin of Alonso had a fine session, too. Will they be Verstappen’s closest challengers for pole later today? I think McLaren could be up there after a typically quiet practice today.
01:18 PM GMT
Third and final practice is a little over 10 minutes away
Have to say that Bearman’s presence gives it an added point of interest. I think Verstappen will be challenged for pole, certainly, but not so much in the race. He should breeze that.
01:15 PM GMT
Youngest drivers to start an F1 race
Max Verstappen: 17 years, 166 days
Lance Stroll: 18 years, 148 days
Lando Norris: 18 years, 124 days
Jaime Alguersuari: 19 years, 125 days
Mike Thackwell: 19 years, 182 days
Ricardo Rodriguez: 19 years, 208 days
Fernando Alonso: 18 years, 218 days
Bearman, if he starts, will slot between Stroll and Norris. Funny to think that longer has elapsed since Alonso making his F1 debut and him racing now than him being born and making his F1 debut...
01:11 PM GMT
First pictures of Bearman getting “fitted” at Ferrari
Gosh he looks young, doesn’t he?
01:02 PM GMT
How has Bearman got in in F1 machinery so far?
Well, in his debut on an F1 weekend in Mexico last year he finished 15th in FP1, ahead of Fernando Alonso as well as the four other rookies. He was only 0.345sec off the pace of experience (and pretty quick) Haas team-mate Nico Hulkenberg, too.
In Abu Dhabi a few weeks later he was 20th and last, yes, but again was just over a tenth of a second behind team-mate Kevin Magnussen. Impressive.
12:51 PM GMT
George Russell interview: ‘There’s no bull---t with Max – I wouldn’t fear him at Mercedes’
Briton relaxed over possibility of Dutchman – who he says will win a fourth world title this season – joining Mercedes in the future. Tom Cary spoke to him earlier this week and you can read the full interview here.
12:43 PM GMT
Realistically, what is a “good” effort from Bearman here?
It is so, so difficult to come in with just one session and expect to get anywhere close to your team-mate. Added to the fact that Bearman has limited time in F1 cars on track (though he has done it, crucially) and that he is up against arguably the fastest man over one lap on the grid... you’d say that getting within even a second of Leclerc would be a fantastic result. The track is also a high-speed one that can punish small errors in a big way.
It would be a different story were he to have three hours of practice before qualifying, rather than one. In FP3 he will just need to do as many laps as he can and get used to the car, the systems and how it all feels. Of course, he is theoretically competing against Leclerc as they are in the same car, but there is also the reality of passing a test to look at home in an F1 car.
12:34 PM GMT
Oliver Bearman’s racing history
12:27 PM GMT
Reminder of timings for this weekend
Friday March 8
Third practice: 1.30pm GMT
Qualifying: 5pm
Saturday March 9
Saudi Arabian Grand Prix: 5pm
12:17 PM GMT
Bearman will race with the No 38 this weekend
Welcoming the 776th @F1 driver to the grid, @OllieBearman! 👊
Ollie becomes the 97th driver to race in F1 for @Ferrari, using the number 38#SaudiArabianGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/VmubDGNDbf— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) March 8, 2024
12:16 PM GMT
Alexander Albon had appendicitis pretty bad at the end of 2021
Get well soon @Carlossainz55, I know a good surgeon if you need
— Alex Albon (@alex_albon) March 8, 2024
He was back to race in Singapore, though that race was three weeks rather than two weeks later.
12:06 PM GMT
British teenager Oliver Bearman to replace Carlos Sainz for Saudi Arabia GP
18-year-old Briton Oliver Bearman will make his Formula One debut this weekend with Carlos Sainz suffering from appendicitis. The Spaniard had missed media duties on Wednesday but took part in first and second practice on Thursday. However, on Friday morning Ferrari released a statement that confirmed Sainz’s absence.
“Carlos Sainz has been diagnosed with appendicitis and will require surgery. As from FP3 and for the rest of this weekend, he will be replaced by reserve driver Oliver Bearman. Oliver will therefore take no further part in this round of the F2 Championship,” the team’s statement read.
It is another bout of tough luck for Sainz after his promising podium in Bahrain but it is also an incredible opportunity for the young Bearman, who finished sixth in last season’s Formula Two championship. Bearman is again taking part in this year’s F2 season which has two rounds at Jeddah and he took pole position for the feature race.
The highly-rated teenager is a Ferrari academy driver but is officially listed as Haas’s reserve driver and has previously entered two first practice sessions for the American team last year: in Mexico City and in Abu Dhabi.
It also means that he becomes the first English driver to race for Ferrari since Nigel Mansell in 1990, beating Lewis Hamilton - who races for the Scuderia next year - to that feat. Should he start the race on Saturday he will also become the third youngest driver to enter an F1 grand prix, behind Lance Stroll and Max Verstappen, who both race here this weekend.
It is a big ask to expect Bearman to be remotely on the pace and he will need plenty of track time in final practice (which begins at 1.30pm) to get used to the car. It helps somewhat that he has been driving here in F2 this weekend but the F1 car will be a different beast. Still, it is an excellent chance to showcase his credentials at a time when the grid for next year looks to be in flux.
Ferrari have not said how long they expect Sainz to be sidelined for but there is a two-week break before the next race in Australia (also aided by this weekend’s race taking place on Saturday) so there is a decent chance he will be in the cockpit in Melbourne.