Saudi Grand Prix: How to Watch and What to Know

March 19, 2023

When the Mercedes driver George Russell climbed out of his car two weeks ago after the first race of the Formula 1 season, he declared the title race was already over. Red Bull’s cars, he said, were simply too fast.

“They have got this championship sewn up,” Russell said. Red Bull, he predicted, might win every race.

That prediction may be proved correct eventually: Red Bull did, after all, have the fastest car in qualifying again on Saturday night, when Sergio Pérez won pole position ahead of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on Sunday. But a mechanical breakdown that brought Pérez’s teammate Max Verstappen limping back to the garage will serve as a reminder that nothing is a lock when it comes to fragile cars, finicky systems and tight corners.

Verstappen will start 15th on Sunday. The race for the title is, for one day at least, back on.