Piastri Wins Big in Saudi Arabia

With all that's going on in the world right now, it's great to be a fan of F1. This is the most interesting start to a season I've seen since following the sport, because we have three different drivers neck and neck, and four different manufacturers that are one upgrade away from becoming dominant.

The teams are probably flying out of Saudi Arabia today, but the race on Sunday was incredible. As the world's fastest street circuit, the Jeddah Corniche Circuit in Saudi Arabia is always a big challenge for Formula 1 teams that just raced in Bahrain with its much slower corners the prior weekend. The teams make big changes to their cars from Friday testing to the Sunday Grand Prix. McLaren was ready for the challenge though, as their drivers finished in P1 and P4 after an Easter weekend full of surprises.

Race Highlights

• Oscar and Verstappen battle for P1 off the line before a Lap 1 crash triggers an early Safety Car
• Lando Norris started in P10 after a qualifying accident but finished in P4
• Oscar takes our first-ever win at the Saudi Arabian GP
• Charles Leclerc has the most impressive drive of his season for Ferrari
• Veteran driver Lewis Hamilton struggles with car dynamics
• Williams had a great weekend, with both drivers scoring points

How it Started

With Max Verstappen in the front of the pack, Oscar Piastri was in the hunt. Right as the lights went green, the Australian was quicker off the line and the two were neck and neck going into the first turn of the race. Max ended up not having enough room to turn, and left the track limits and returned to first place after going back onto the track. There is plenty of debate of who is to blame for this, but the stewards from race control decided that Max should not have reclaimed first place after leaving the track because it was his own fault he didn't have enough room. Max never recovered from the five second penalty given to him for this infringement, so Oscar stayed in front the entire race.

How it Ended - Aussie in the Lead!

For the first time in about 15 years, an Australian is leading the driver's championship! Mark Webber was the last to do it, back in 2010. McLaren started the 2025 season off very confident in their ability, their cars, and their drivers.

"I think now we've got some confidence that we know how to win again and we will do that differently than we did this year," he said. "I think the field's going to be even tighter than last season. I see the top four teams being just as tight as they were at the end of the year. I wouldn't be surprised if you see the turnaround we had, so there's no reason why other teams can't have that type of turnaround." - McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown before the start of the 2025 F1 season

Oscar Piastri is loved by many fans... at times he can seem more relatable and genuine than the other drivers. Other than being incredible at steering a wheel, the Australian is praised for his ability to remain calm and think outside of the box in his performances on the track.

At one point during the race, Oscar was trailing behind Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton. Oscar's teammate, Lando Norris, had tried to pass Lewis Hamilton multiple times at corner 27 only to be passed back at corner 1. In an effort to not have both McLaren drivers playing musical chairs with Lewis, Lando's race engineer went over to Oscar's and told him he should probably have a go right at turn 1 instead of 27 to surprise Lewis. Well, it worked. Oscar's pass was much cleaner and he didn't surrender his position back to Lewis after passing like Lando did.

Next Race

The next track on the calendar is the Miami Grand Prix which will take place from May 2–4 at the Miami International Autodrome, a street circuit encircling Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.