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Lewis Hamilton completed the practice double on Friday, leading Mercedes 1-2 in second practice; Hamilton is the fastest despite recording the best time on the middle tire, while Verstappen came in fourth as traffic disrupted qualifying simulations; Watch the qualifiers live on Sky Sports F1 at 5pm on Saturday by Matt Morlidge
Last update: 12/03/21 6:40 PM
Watch the first crash we’ve seen here in F1 sessions and a big Ferrari driver’s crash in high-speed turns 21-22
Watch the first crash we’ve seen here in F1 sessions and a big Ferrari driver’s crash in high-speed turns 21-22
Lewis Hamilton continued his strong early run at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix with another fastest time in second practice, with championship rival Max Verstappen only finishing fourth in a frantic session around the new Jeddah street circuit that ended in a severe crash for Charles Leclerc.
Leclerc lost control of his Ferrari during the high-speed Turns 21 and 22 and hit the barriers at around 150 mph to display red flags in the closing stages. His Ferrari was badly damaged, although Leclerc was unhurt.
It was the most dramatic moment in a session led by Hamilton, who secured a practice double on Friday at the penultimate weekend of his title fight against Verstappen despite a P2 crash.
Hamilton, nor Valtteri Bottas, who was 0.061 seconds slower, managed to clock a time on the soft tire during the qualifying simulation, in heavy traffic on the very fast and narrow Corniche circuit. But the Mercedes drivers still outdid the chase group, which was not surprisingly led by Verstappen.
Some avoided the action required by Lewis Hamilton in Turn Two after Nikita Mazepin went for a spin in front of him on the track.
Some avoided the action required by Lewis Hamilton in Turn Two after Nikita Mazepin went for a spin in front of him on the track.
Pierre Gasly was the fastest among the soft-tire racers in third for the AlphaTauri, within a tenth of Hamilton.
Verstappen is fourth, 0.195 seconds behind Hamilton, the man he leads by eight points in the title race. Verstappen put his fastest lap on the fastest tyre, although by the time he did that – with traffic affecting him too – his tires were six laps old.
Sergio Perez was only ninth in the other Red Bull.
Anthony Davidson was on SkyPad analyzing how Charles Leclerc exited second practice ahead of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
Anthony Davidson was on SkyPad analyzing how Charles Leclerc exited second practice ahead of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon, who starred in Qatar, have once again found themselves in the top ten, ahead of Carlos Sainz at Ferrari. AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda also shone in seventh, although he posted his best time on the hard tire.
Leclerc, whose Ferrari will likely be trying to fix long into Friday night, was 10th, ahead of McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris.
The first qualifying session on F1’s second longest track, and second fastest, will be shown live on Sky Sports F1 at 5pm on Saturday.
Verstappen vs Hamilton: How the title can be settled this weekend
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