Formula 1: Sergio Perez wins in Saudi Arabia as Fernando Alonso loses podium

Perez took a 5th vocation win

Sergio Perez held disconnected team-mate Max Verstappen to instrumentality a Red Bull one-two successful the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

But aft passing Mercedes' George Russell and Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso, Verstappen could not drawback Perez and had to settee for second.

Alonso finished 3rd but took a post-race punishment dropping him to fourth.

The Spaniard was penalised 5 seconds for not being correctly successful his grid slot astatine the commencement of the race.

He served it successful his pit stop, but it was adjudged that the squad had breached the rules by touching the car earlier the 5 seconds had elapsed and helium was fixed a 10-second punishment arsenic a result, promoting Russell to third.

Lewis Hamilton took fifth, aft concisely challenging Russell pursuing the restart aft the information car, up of the Ferraris of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc.

It was Red Bull's 2nd consecutive one-two astatine the commencement of a play they person begun with each content they volition beryllium astir intolerable to beat.

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How did Perez clasp disconnected Verstappen?

Perez started from pole, mislaid the pb astatine the commencement to Alonso, but controlled the expansive prix from the beforehand aft re-passing the Spaniard connected the 4th lap.

Meanwhile, Verstappen steadily picked his mode done the tract from his lowly starting position, the effect of a driveshaft nonaccomplishment successful qualifying.

He was up to 4th spot erstwhile a information car was sent retired connected thigh 18 of 50 erstwhile Lance Stroll's Aston Martin stopped connected way pursuing a method failure.

At the time, Perez had a 20-second pb implicit the Dutchman, but the information car brought the tract backmost unneurotic and appeared to springiness Verstappen a accidental to instrumentality his 2nd triumph successful 2 races this year.

After the restart, Verstappen made speedy advancement past Russell and past Alonso portion Perez built arsenic overmuch of a pb arsenic helium could.

Perez was 5.4 seconds successful beforehand by the clip Verstappen got into 2nd spot and was capable to clasp the borderline astatine astir that aforesaid magnitude for the remainder of the race.

Verstappen complained implicit the vigor astir problems with this driveshaft, but had nary occupation making it to the flag.

Verstappen acceptable his caput connected trying to acceptable fastest thigh and clinched it connected the last thigh - stealing it from Perez - to guarantee helium leads the title by virtuousness of the constituent helium gained for mounting it.

Another podium for Alonso

Behind the Red Bulls, Alonso measured his gait and held connected to 3rd contempt being fixed a five-second punishment for being retired of presumption connected the grid. Alonso was excessively acold to the left, and had his left-hand wheels retired of the grid container connected the track.

He served it astatine his pit halt nether the information car but towards the extremity of the contention Mercedes told to propulsion arsenic hard arsenic helium could to support the borderline betwixt the 2 cars to little than 5 seconds successful lawsuit Alonso was penalised for the pit halt itself.

Alonso drove a accelerated last thigh himself to support himself much than 5 seconds up of Russell, but it was to nary avail.

In the stop, the mechanic astatine the backmost of the car touched it with the rear jack earlier the punishment clip was up and the stewards punished him post-race, giving Russell his archetypal "podium" of the season, adjacent though Alonso stood connected it with Red Bull drivers.

Hamilton, connected an off-set tyre strategy utilizing mean tyres 2nd alternatively than first, concisely challenged Russell aft the safety-car restart but was incapable to walk and had to settee for fifth.

Hamilton had the compensation of passing some Ferraris acknowledgment to stopping nether the information car portion the Italian cars did truthful nether greenish emblem conditions.

The 'free' halt leap-frogged Hamilton up of Leclerc, who started 12th aft a 10-place grid penalty, and past passed Sainz with a cut-back determination retired of Turn Two a mates of laps aft the re-start.

For Ferrari it was different hard day, their car seemingly the 4th fastest connected contention pace.

Alpine's Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly took eighth and ninth, portion Kevin Magnussen won the last constituent for Haas with a hopeless overtaking determination connected Yuki Tsunoda's Alpha Tauri successful the closing laps.