The Jeddah circuit is a favorite for Checo Pérez.
He likes to feel that pressure of going full throttle with the walls near the side mirrors.
A street circuit that, basically, suits him much better.
There he won last year and collected two of the three
pole positions
of his entire career.
This year, Verstappen took the lead at the start of the race with four tenths of a difference over the Mexican who qualified third.
At the start of the Saturday race, the Slims' favorite boy made up for everything by securing second place.
He had to avoid a penalty for a mistake so that Leclerc did not steal his place on the podium.
Pérez, with his second silver trophy of the season, remains strong.
The automatic sentence on the Saudi Arabian track is that of the 20 drivers who compete, there are always a couple who end up knocked out.
It was already Pérez's turn when, in 2021, he had to leave after a collision with Leclerc.
The conditions of the Jedda Corniche circuit are special because it has an extension of 6,174 kilometers, 50 frenetic laps and three DRS zones (when the rear wing of the cars can be activated).
This year, Aston Martin's Lance Stroll ended up embedded in the crash barriers, prompting a
safety car
on the track.
The Red Bulls decided to change the tires.
And there Checo Pérez made the mistake that compromised his career: when leaving the pits he was careful not to collide with a McLaren, but he ended up compromising Fernando Alonso.
The track stewards determined that the Mexican's action was dangerous and gave him a five-second penalty.
Pérez's goal was to surpass Lando Norris, be second behind Verstappen and make an acceptable difference to avoid losing a good place on the podium with the punishment.
In theory, the Red Bull is the most powerful and fastest car than the rest;
In practice, any mistake would ruin any dream, as happened last season.
With 14 years in Formula 1, Checo Pérez added his 37th podium. Since 2021, when he arrived at Red Bull, he has competed in a high-quality team and has touched maximum glory, destined for a Verstappen as unstoppable as he is solid.
Pérez is fighting for a contract extension in the team and, so far, things have gone well.
His closest competitor, Daniel Ricciardo, is in the basement with the RB.
The vacancy at Red Bull remains in dispute.
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