That concludes our live text commentary of qualifying at the Saudi A🍃rabian Gr🅘and Prix!
Thanks for joining us and we will be back from 5pmಞ UK time tomorrow to build up to Sunday'🔯s grand prix, with lights out at 6pm.
Until then🥂, keep it on mahbx.com fꦇor all the best reaction to today's thrilling qualifying.
"Very happy. Iℱ definitely didn't expect to be on pole here after FP3.
"The car came alive in the night. We made some changes an♐d the car came to me.
"It's really satisfied. To be first in qualify𝓰ing is the best position to be here.🌺"
| 2025 F1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Qualifying Results | ||||||
| Pos | Driver | Nat. | Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 |
| 1 | Max Verstappen | NED | Oracle Red Bull Racing | 1m27.778s | 1m27.529s | 1m27.294s |
| 2 | Oscar Piastri | AUS | McLaren F1 Team | 1m27.901s | 1m27.545s | 1m27.304s |
| 3 | George Russell | GBR | Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team | 1m28.282s | 1m27.599s | 1m27.407s |
| 4 | Charles Leclerc | MON | Scuderia Ferrari HP | 1m28.552s | 1m27.866s | 1m27.670s |
| 5 | Kimi Antonelli | ITA | Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team | 1m28.128s | 1m27.798s | 1m27.866s |
| 6 | Carlos Sainz | ESP | Atlassian Williams Racing | 1m28.354s | 1m28.024s | 1m28.164s |
| 7 | Lewis Hamilton | GBR | Scuderia Ferrari HP | 1m28.372s | 1m28.102s | 1m28.201s |
| 8 | Yuki Tsunoda | JPN | Oracle Red Bull Racing | 1m28.226s | 1m27.990s | 1m28.204s |
| 9 | Pierre Gasly | FRA | BWT Alpine F1 Team | 1m28.421s | 1m28.025s | 1m28.367s |
| 10 | Lando Norris | GBR | McLaren F1 Team | 1m27.805s | 1m27.481s | No Time Set |
| 11 | Alex Albon | THA | Atlassian Williams Racing | 1m28.279s | 1m28.109s | |
| 12 | Liam Lawson | NZL | Visa Cash App Racing Bulls F1 Team | 1m28.561s | 1m28.191s | |
| 13 | Fernando Alonso | ESP | Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team | 1m28.548s | 1m28.303s | |
| 14 | Isack Hadjar | FRA | Visa Cash App Racing Bulls F1 Team | 1m28.571s | 1m28.418s | |
| 15 | Oliver Bearman | GBR | MoneyGram Haas F1 Team | 1m28.536s | 1m28.646s | |
| 16 | Lance Stroll | CAN | Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team | 1m28.645s | ||
| 17 | Jack Doohan | AUS | BWT Alpine F1 Team | 1m28.739s | ||
| 18 | Nico Hulkenberg | GER | Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber | 1m28.782s | ||
| 19 | Esteban Ocon | FRA | MoneyGram Haas F1 Team | 1m29.092s | ||
| 20 | Gabriel Bortoleto | BRA | Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber | 1m29.465s | ||
What a qualifying session that was! Here's how the �𒈔�rest of the top 10 looks...
Verstappen has done it! What a stuꦚnning lap from the Red Bull driver.
The four-time world champion claims pole, beating Piastri by just 0.010s. Wow! 🌠;
Piastri now pips Ru🎃ssell by 0.103s to move onto P1!
But Verstappen is going faster behind...
Russell, with a stunning lap, in🐻cluding a brilliant first sector, goes fastest by 0.152s!
Verstappen, going earlier than his 𓃲rivals, takes provisional pole after beating Piastri's iꩵnitial benchmark by just 0.001s!
Gam🧜e on in the battle for pole. Can P🍒iastri - or anyone else - find an answer to that?
Norris's wrecked McLaren has been cleared and🌺 we have got going once more for the final 8 minutes of Q3.&n🎀bsp;
One McLaren is out of the running for pole - can Piastri take it for the ꦗs♐econd weekend on the trot?
Norris is fine and ou🧸t of his car but that was a big hit, destroying the front left of his McLaren.
Norris lost control of his M🔥CL39 at high-speed and flew over the kerb before slamming into 🌜the barriers.
With no time on the board, that leaves the world championship leader on𝓰ly 10th on the grid for Sunday's grand prix.
"******* idiot," Norris laments over team 🐻radio.
Norris has crashed on his first lap of Q3!
The final paꦛrt of qualifying b🌼egins. Who will claim pole? It's time to find out...
Hamilton will be 🍃breathing a sig𒐪h of relief after reaching Q3 with the 10th-fastest time.
The seven-time world champion snuck thro🐠u🌞gh by just 0.007s in the end.
11) Albon
12) Lawson
13) Alonso
14) Hadjar
15) Bearman
Albon runs earlier than the rest and improves to go sixth. Will t𝕴hat be enough to ꦛmake it through to Q3?
The Williams driver now faces an anxious wait before his rivals take to the track fo𒁃r their final laps of Q2.
The drivers currently heading out of qualifying and in need of a faster lap are Albon, Bear🦹man, Hadjar, Alonso and Lawson.
No🌃rris shoots to the top with a time that pips Verstappen's Red 🌌Bull by just 0.048s.
Piastri is third in the other McLaren, ahead of Russell's Mercedes and Leclerc's Ferrꩲari.
Tsunoda, Hamilton, S𓆏ainz, Antonelli and Gasly are the other drivers in the top-10 after the first ruജns.
Only the top three used a new set of soft t💯yres for those laps.
We arꦡe underway in Q1, with Albon and Bearꦬman the first drivers to head out on track.
While most ไof the focus was on the drop zone, Verstappen produced a 🅰great late lap to go quickest at the end of Q1.
The Red Bull driver pipped the McLarens of Norris and Piastri by just 0.𒊎02🍸7s.
That's it for the first part of qualifying. Q2 will be coming up in🌱 a few minut🐲es time.
After briefly sitting on th♈e bubble of a Q1 exit, Hamilton made it safely through in P9 thanks to a late i💞mprovement.
16) Stroll
17) Doohan
18) Hulkenberg
19) Ocon
20) Bortoleto
Final laps beginning now and it's time to see who will be eliminated fro💝m qualifying...
Hamilton does improve to haul himself out of the drop zone and up to 10th. The🥂 times a🦩re incredibly close, though, so there's no guarantee that lap will be quick enough to safely progress...
After the opening runs of Q1, it's Lawson, Ga🔴sly, Hamiltonও, Ocon and Bortoleto in the bottom five.
However, times are rapidly improving as drivers continue to ﷽circula♉te as the track ramps up.
Norris is the early Q1 pacesetter, lead🥂ing the way by half a second from Leclerc.⛎
Albon is third as Hamilton slots i൲nto P4, 0.8s off the pace.
