Hamilton Struggles in Jeddah as Verstappen Clinches Pole in Chaotic Qualifying…….. read more
Lewis Hamilton endured another tough session at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in Jeddah as his difficult weekend continued during Saturday’s qualifying. The seven-time world champion finished well off the pace, ending up nearly a full second behind pole-sitter Max Verstappen. The session itself was full of drama, concluding with a red flag caused by a crash from McLaren’s Lando Norris.
Max Verstappen secured pole position with a flying lap of 1:27.294, just managing to edge out McLaren’s Oscar Piastri by a razor-thin margin of one hundredth of a second. The pair will start Sunday’s race from the front row, while George Russell impressed by putting his Mercedes in third. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc took the fourth spot on the grid.
A notable performance came from 18-year-old rookie Kimi Antonelli, who put in an outstanding lap to qualify fifth for Mercedes, showing strong potential in only his second Grand Prix weekend. Carlos Sainz, Lewis Hamilton, Yuki Tsunoda, and Pierre Gasly completed the rest of the top ten.
Hamilton, now racing for Ferrari, continues to struggle with adapting to the SF-25 chassis. Despite his wealth of experience and efforts to find pace, he remained over a second behind Verstappen’s benchmark. His seventh-place finish also came behind teammate Leclerc, adding to the internal pressure at Ferrari.
The qualifying session was disrupted by a red flag after Lando Norris lost control and crashed in Q2. Fortunately, the McLaren driver was unhurt, but the incident forced an early end to the session for several drivers and affected their final laps. Norris will start the race from 10th position.
Hamilton’s issues seem to stem from both the unfamiliar handling characteristics of his new car and ongoing setup challenges. The Briton has admitted that he’s yet to find comfort with Ferrari’s package, which is limiting his ability to extract maximum performance.
Despite the struggles, Sunday’s race promises excitement. The Jeddah Corniche Circuit is known for its high-speed layout and narrow confines, which often lead to dramatic incidents and safety car periods. This could open opportunities for drivers like Hamilton to recover positions and make strategic gains during the race.
With Verstappen starting at the front and close competition right behind, the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix is shaping up to be another thrilling round in the 2025 Formula 1 season. All eyes will be on whether Hamilton can turn his fortunes around or if Verstappen continues his dominant run.
