Formula 1 Saudi Arabia Practice Times

On 28 November, one week before the race, Williams co-founder and former owner Sir Frank Williams died at the age of 79. Teams sported tributes on their cars, and a minute's silence took place approximately one hour before the start of the race. On Sunday, former Williams driver Damon Hill did a lap of honour in the FW07, Williams's first championship winning car.

Alpine ran a special livery for the weekend to commemorate their 100th race with one of their sponsors Castrol. On the eve of the race weekend, Williams CEO Jost Capito announced that he was tested COVID-positive, therefore missing the weekend with the team. Amilton, who topped both practice sessions on Friday, declared himself a fan of the circuit.

"Once you get the rhythm it is really beautiful to drive," said the seven-time world champion, who heads into the race trailing Verstappen by just eight points. But he - and his pitwall - will be on red alert all weekend. With two races left the tension is rising when it comes to the title fight between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton.

The difference in points is very little and both drivers are expected to go into the final race weekend with a tie or with a minimal difference. The atmosphere between Mercedes and Red Bull isn't getting any better either, every weekend there are protests or complaints against each other and also this weekend they won't give each other anything anymore. Saudi Arabia will make its debut on the Formula 1 calendar this year. Early this year it was announced that the race would take place in the streets of Jeddah. It was doubtful if the track would be ready in time for the Formula 1race, but more than two weeks before the race weekend the final touches were made and the track was ready for use. This track has 27 corners and it is expected that the F1 cars will reach an average speed of 250km/h here.

This is a new track for each team, so it will be interesting to see who will be on top. F1 lands at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit for the inaugural Saudi Arabian Grand Prix today as Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton continue their epic battle. Hamilton trails Verstappen by eight points but starts on pole, so hold onto your helmets for a potential title decider! F1 fans in Luxembourg can stream the race for free. Make sure you know how to watch a Saudi Arabian Grand Prix free live stream wherever you are with a VPN. The first-ever Formula One Saudi Arabian Grand Prix is just a few days away, with the drivers set to race around what will be the longest – and fastest – street circuit in Formula 1 history.

In terms of track dynamic, there will be long straights at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit this weekend, which ought to favour Mercedes as they gun for a one-two finish. After a short delay, the Formula 2 cars have had an outing on it and I would be surprised if we escape either of the first two hour-long practice sessions without a red flag. I do also have some worries about the size of crashes we could see, too. The track and facilities were only finished very recently, but let's hope everything goes smoothly. Hard to say at this point - as it ever is - whether any car has an advantage.

It's a new track and drivers were feeling their way around this new track and its dangers. Verstappen did not improve greatly on the soft tyres from the hards, so maybe some set-up work to do for Red Bull. Hence, amidst such an interesting race weekend in the offing, we wouldn't advise the viewers to miss out on the practice sessions. So, here's us playing our part in guiding you through when and where to watch the live-action of FP1, FP2, and FP3. But, what makes this event even more special is the level of unpredictability the circuit carries within itself, as Formula 1 is the first racing series to host a race at the Jeddah Corniche street circuit. The track looks utterly fresh and juicy, and the narrow racing strip hints at some exciting moments that could trigger safety cars and red flags.

The first Friday practice will air on ESPNU and the second will air on ESPN2. Saturday's practice will air on ESPN2 while qualifying will air on ESPNews. All F1 events this weekend will be available via live stream at WatchESPN. You will need a cable log-in to stream the events, so if you don't have one, you can get a trial from YouTube TV, Hulu with Live TV, AT&T TV Now, FuboTV, or Sling TV to stream the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix weekend. I can tell you that there are 27 corners – that's a lot of corners – but unlike Singapore, where there's also a lot of corners, there's also quite a few straights, three DRS zones in Jeddah.

It's fast, it'll be the second fastest lap in terms of average speed behind Monza, which for a street circuit is fairly awesome. I think it's going to be spectacular under the lights. I think they've done an excellent job to get the track ready, albeit some of the infrastructure around the track might not be quite as finished as the the local authorities would like it. Elsewhere outside the big two, Fernando Alonso's podium finish, the changing team line-ups for next year and even the additions of rules such as sprint qualifying have all been big talking points in Formula One recently.

The action resumes for the first time since Qatar two weeks ago with the second part of the season-ending Middle East triple header. This time it's the debut of another new track, in Saudi Arabia at the Jeddah Corniche Street Circuit. It is a fast-flowing circuit that looks exceedingly narrow at certain points, especially for the speed the cars will be travelling at.

Uki Tsunoda struggles to get out of his garage but eventually gets on his way. Looks like Verstappen is starting a hot lap on the hard tyres. Norris is the only driver to set his lap time on the soft tyres.

Bottas locks up at turn one, saying his tyres were not ready. Max Verstappen has an eight-point lead over Lewis Hamilton heading into these last two races of the 2021 Formula 1 season, so the importance on a good position in qualifying today is that much greater. The Red Bull star impressed in FP3, but the Mercedes driver will no doubt have a trick or two up his sleeve as he looks to retain his championship title. Ello and welcome along to our live blog for Saturday's Saudi Arabia Grand Prix qualifying session, as we work out the starting grid for the penultimate race of the 2021 Formula 1 season. Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton are the favourites for pole position and, with overtaking so difficult at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, starting at the front will be crucial. Nikita Mazepin, like Gasly, was also shocked by the slow-moving Mercedes of Hamilton with the session ticking down but fortunately he also avoided a high-speed crash.

"Not great at all," said FIA Race Director Michael Masi as he gave his take on the situation. The Russian finished 0.05s ahead of team mate Mick Schumacher, as the Haas drivers rounded out the standings, in P19 and P20 respectively. Hamilton set the early pace on hard tyres but couldn't improve on his fastest effort of 1m28.314s when it came to using softs.

Meanwhile, Verstappen enjoyed his soft-tyred running and eclipsed his rival midway through the session, improving to set the ultimate benchmark of 1m28.100s and leave Hamilton two-tenths behind in P2. Max Verstappen topped the final practice session ahead of qualifying for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix as Mercedes rival Lewis Hamilton finished second and Red Bull team mate Sergio Perez took third. This weekend it is time for the Grand Prix of Saudi Arabia.

We start the weekend with the first free practice. This practice gives the drivers the opportunity to explore the new track. You can follow this first free practice with the liveblog from GPblog. DAZN has been the home of F1 in Japan for a few seasons and will serve up a Saudi Arabian Grand Prix live stream this weekend.

The service delivers live coverage of every race of the 2021 season and stats galore, making it a no-brainer for F1 fans in Japan. Neither Hamilton nor Bottas could improve on the soft tyres on their qualifying simulation runs. Verstappen also struggled to do so - but did in the end shave 0.077secs off his fastest time to edge closer to the Mercedes.

Seven-times world champion Hamilton took the bonus point for fastest lap to level with Verstappen on 369.5 points after 21 races. Verstappen can win the championship this weekend, unlike Hamilton, and should Hamilton win with Verstappen second the gap will be just one point heading into the decider next weekend. Or, if Hamilton gets the fastest lap point in addition to that scenario it will be level. "The car has been performing well recently and is probably in the best place it has been all season, with the drivers confident to push it to the limit. That's encouraging for the final races and gives us strong momentum to take forward," Wolff said.

The penultimate Saudi Arabian GP is almost here folks! We've hardly got hours before the inaugural F1 race weekend gets underway. Of course, this weekend could well gift us with some ecstatic battles between the championship rivals, who will most likely remain under the spotlight through all of the 3 days. Hamilton, though, hasn't made it easy for Verstappen or Red Bull. "The design brings out the best of a modern street circuit but also has fast-paced free-flowing areas that will create fast speeds and overtaking opportunities," said F1 managing director of motorsports Ross Brawn.

The Jeddah Corniche track joins F1 as its newest street circuit, with a specially-built layout designed to encourage fast wheel-to-wheel racing. And the drivers will not have seen anything much like it. With only two races left in the 2021 season, there is still much to play and fight for as the drivers head to their second of three Middle-Eastern races this weekend. Fubo TV is one of the biggest and best sports streaming services in the US. It carries ESPN and ABC so it's a great watch to stream the 2021 F1 season in full. The app supports Roku, Fire TV and iOS/Android devices.

ESPN will carry live coverage of every session of the 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. Practice sessions will be available on ESPN2, with qualifying and the race broadcast on the main ESPN channel. Sky Germany has the exclusive rights to every live F1 race this season, including a 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix live stream. Obviously still very fast as you could see today with their fastest lap and both their cars getting past pretty much everyone quite easily.

There will be three practice sessions for the penultimate Grand Prix of the season with two held on Friday, December 3 and one in the morning of Saturday, December 4. F course, these things can often be hyped up only for the race itself to prove uneventful. But Friday's first glimpse of the cars in action suggested we are unlikely to get through the weekend without a few red flags at least. "I have been racing a long time but that was incredibly tough," said Hamilton who gained an extra point for the fastest lap. The result left the seven-time champion level with rival Max Verstappen ahead of the final race in Abu Dhabi next weekend. The drivers and teams were the same as the season entry list with no additional stand-in drivers for the race or practice.

That points margin means Verstappen can clinch the title this weekend, but also means there is the very real prospect of a 'winner-takes-all' season finale in Abu Dhabi, with Hamilton and Mercedes the driver and team in form. Before qualifying later this Saturday, we first of all have the third and final practice session. Lewis Hamilton has been leading the way so far and will look to make a statement in the third session as well. Ferrari's Carlos Sainz has recorded the fastest lap, while the Red Bull drivers of Verstappen and Sergio Perez are now seventh and 12th respectively.

Verstappen leads things as of right now, but Hamilton and Mercedes have won the last two races and have cut the gap right down at the top of the drivers' championship standings. If a race track is fast, Mercedes automatically have the edge over their counterparts. Lewis Hamilton has also been the fastest in qualifying for the previous two events and, to add insult to injury, the Briton beat Verstappen in Qatar with a lap that was over four-tenths quicker than Verstappen could manage.

So, Verstappen has the pace on the softs; Hamilton on the hards. Don't miss a second with F1.com's live coverage and up-to-date reaction. Sergio Perez improved to third – 0.529s behind his team mate – with a late effort to demote Yuki Tsunoda to fourth for AlphaTauri.

Tsunoda's team mate Pierre Gasly managed fifth, but on medium tyres to the rookie's softs. Fox Sports has the rights to show live F1 races in Australia, including the 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix at Jeddah Corniche Circuit. Welcome to the brand-new 6.174km Jeddah Corniche Circuit, a hellishly-fast temporary street track that could play to Mercedes' strengths.

"We don't want Mickey Mouse circuits," said F1 boss Ross Brawn. "We want fast sweeping circuits, circuits which are going to challenge the drivers – and they are going to love it." The championship fight hangs in the balance, but in the context of each driver's title hopes, it is more important for Hamilton to win in Saudi Arabia than Verstappen. "We need to outscore them by four or five points, I think, this weekend, which, looking at recent results might seem like a likely scenario. "There are a couple of bits, it is different in one sense because we have got two incredibly close teams, as a team we are fighting in uncharted territory, no team or driver has won eight titles. While there will be many thrills and spills left in the Drivers' Championship, there is sure to be drama, too, in the Constructors' Championship.

This will emphasise the drives of Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez, who both have pivotal roles to play in our their teammates negotiate the final two races of the season. Lewis Hamilton won a crazy, twice-halted Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on Sunday to send the Formula One world championship into a winner-takes-all final showdown with the Mercedes driver and Red Bull's Max Verstappen level on points. Nd welcome again to the resumption of our live Formula One coverage. Just two races to go and the championship - actually, neither of them - are decided. Max Verstappen currently leads Lewis Hamilton by just eight points and Mercedes lead Red Bull by an even smaller margin - five points. Ewis Hamilton has called for Saudi Arabia's "pretty terrifying" laws on LGBTQ+ and women's rights to be changed, admitting ahead of this weekend's grand prix that he does "not feel comfortable" racing in the country.

He goes again on the soft tyres and is 0.060s quicker than Hamilton after two sectors. He reaches traffic at the end of the lap so gets a tow, which might help... This is a sport, after all, in which a young driver was ordered to crash into a wall in Singapore not so long ago, purely to bring out a safety car so as to give his team-mate a leg up. Fortunately, no one followed him into the barriers, and his car did not block the road.

But that is a serious concern for drivers heading into the weekend. The closing speeds here are such that there is virtually no chance a following car will be able to take evasive action, and no runoff in any case. His eponymous team have won seven drivers' titles – Alan Jones , Keke Rosberg , Nelson Piquet , Nigel Mansell , Alain Prost , Damon Hill , Jacques Villeneuve – and nine constructors' championships since it was co-founded in 1979.

Winds will pick up going into Saturday, but again, the significance is quite low. Hence, weather-wise, a very stable weekend ahead for the teams and drivers. Lewis Hamilton enters race week as the favorite to win at DraftKings Sportsbook. He's installed at -225, followed by Max Verstappen at +250. Hamilton is the favorite to have the fastest qualifying lap at -175, followed by Bottas at +300. Lewis Hamilton kept his hopes of an eighth world championship title alive with a thrilling victory in a dramatic and at times chaotic Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on Sunday.