- Piastri is second in the driver’s championship
- Has a chance to move to Saudi GP first
- Has shown an early form on the Jeddah Corniche circuit
Oscar Piastri sent an early message to the Formula 1 grid, approaching a historic stage in a one-two McLaren during the first training session in Saudi Arabia.
The Australian driver finished second in the second training session on Friday, only 0.163 behind his teammate Lando Norris, while McLaren was at the top of the time leaves at the Jeddah Corniche circuit.
Norris, bouncing from a frustrating weekend in Bahrain, was in good shape with a better moment of 1: 28.267.
The McLaren duo was comfortably in advance on Max Verstappen de Red Bull, who ranked third and almost three tenths behind Norris.
PiaStri, going up high after his victory in Bahrain, is now only three points behind Norris in the championship ranking.
If the 24 -year -old can continue his current form, he could become the first Australian to lead the F1 championship in 15 years.
Piastri finished second behind his teammate Lando Norris during the first training session in Saudi Arabia
Piastri has a chance to go to the head of the championship with a victory in the Saudi GP
The last Aussie to exceed the ranking was Piastri manager, Mark Webber, in 2010 during his stay at Red Bull.
“Jeddah is a piece that I really appreciate and that I have good memories of past visits,” said Pitri. “I am determined to hit the floor in Saudi.”
The pilot born in Melbourne already has victories in Shanghai and Bahrain this season and seems more comfortable than ever in McLaren.
The Friday session underlined the growing threat that McLaren represents Red Bull in 2025, especially on fast circuits like Jeddah.
While Verstappen is only eight points in third, Red Bull continues to fight with coherence, as we see in Bahrain.
Piastri briefly exceeded the time leaf in the middle of the session before Norris responds with his best tour under the lights.
The Australian cut the wall during his knees but avoided serious damage, unlike several others.
Friday’s race was not without drama, Yuki Tsunoda crashed heavily in the last 10 minutes.
The last Aussie to finish the F1 championship was the manager of Piastri and former pilot Mark Webber
It was not a perfect practice session for Piastri who will have another chance on the course in the second training today
The Japanese driver, during his third race weekend for Red Bull, cut the interior wall in the last corner and lost control.
“I just overturned and cut the wall with the inner wheel,” said Tsunoda. “It has suffered damage, and after that, no control. Apologies to the team. “
Despite the accident, Tsunoda has always displayed the sixth fastest time in the session, behind Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz.
The incident highlighted a red flag, reducing a short precious track time for many teams in informed conditions.
The session also saw a brief drama while Lance was walking and stopped in turn 1, triggering a yellow flag.
Meanwhile, Gabriel Bortoleto de Sauber did not participate in the second training due to a fuel leak discovered before the session.
The Leclerc de Ferrari finished fourth, half a second of the rhythm, while his teammate Lewis Hamilton had a difficult outing in 13th.
Hamilton is the subject of an investigation for having pretended to have hindered Alex Albon de Williams during a high -speed section of the circuit.
However, the commissioners later ruled that no other measure would be taken.
The final training takes place on Saturday afternoon, with qualifications scheduled at 6 p.m. local time.
