Lewis Hamilton will once again have a mountain to climb after the grid was set for the 2024 F1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in Jeddah later today (Saturday March 9).
The seven-time world champion was almost a second off the pace down in P8, as his farewell season at Mercedes continues to produce miserable early results.
Meanwhile Red Bull's reigning world champion Max Verstappen dominated the field once again to take pole by more than three tenths of a second - he will once again start alongside Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc on the front row.
Leclerc’s Ferrari team-mate on Saturday will be the 18-year-old Oliver Bearman, who is set to become the youngest ever Briton to drive in an F1 grand prix. He claimed P11 on Friday deputising for Carlos Sainz, who had been ruled out by appendicitis.
Sergio Perez was third in front of Fernando Alonso, who performed an experienced trick to drag the Aston Martin to fourth.
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F1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024 Grid
1. Max Verstappen [Red Bull] - 1:27.472
2. Charles Leclerc [Ferrari] - +0.319s
3. Sergio Perez [Red Bull] - +0.335s
4. Fernando Alonso [Aston Martin] - +0.374s
5. Oscar Piastri [McLaren] - +0.617s
6. Lando Norris [McLaren] - +0.660s
7. George Russell [Mercedes] - +0.844s
8. Lewis Hamilton [Mercedes] - +0.988s
9. Yuki Tsunoda [VCARB] - +1.075s
10. Lance Stroll [Aston Martin] - +1.100s
11. Oliver Bearman [Ferrari]
12. Alex Albon [Williams]
13. Kevin Magnussen [Haas]
14. Daniel Ricciardo [VCARB]
15. Nico Hulkenberg [Haas]
16. Valtteri Bottas [Kick Sauber]
17. Esteban Ocon [Alpine]
18. Pierre Gasly [Alpine]
19. Logan Sargeant [Williams]
20. Zhou Guanyu [Kick Sauber]
Are there any grid penalties?
No grid penalties were handed to drivers after qualifying.
When is the 2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix?
Lights out in Jeddah will be at 2000 local time on Saturday March 9. That is 1700 in the UK, 1800 CET or noon on the East Coast of the United States.
If you are watching on the West Coast of the United States, the key time is 0900 PST.
READ MORE: F1 Schedule 2024: Full calendar with all you need to know about every grand prix
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