Oscar Piastri won his second Formula 1 race of the season in the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)
(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Oscar Piastri has his first lead in the Formula 1 world championship.
Piastri took advantage of Max Verstappen’s five-second time penalty at the first corner of the race to take the lead during the race’s only green-flag pit stop cycle and win Sunday’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. The victory moves Piastri ahead of McLaren teammate Lando Norris for the top spot in the points standings as both drivers are ahead of Verstappen in third.
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Verstappen won pole on Saturday ahead of Piastri as Norris crashed in the final round of qualifying and had to start 10th. Piastri got a better start and was even with Verstappen going into the first corner. Verstappen was o the outside and drove off the track before accelerating away ahead of a crash between Yuki Tsunoda and Pierre Gasly that brought out a safety car.
Stewards determined that Verstappen had gone off the track and gained an advantage, so he was penalized five seconds at his pit stop. Piastri pitted before Verstappen did, and was able to eventually take a lead of just under four seconds over Verstappen after Verstappen made his pit stop.
Verstappen finished second as Norris was fourth behind Charles Leclerc as Ferrari earned its first podium of the season. Mercedes’ George Russell finished fifth despite a late tire wear issue that forced him to slow considerably in the waning laps.