Not surprisingly, Mercedes was fastest in the first practice session for this weekend’s 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix – with seven-time defending Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton doing the honors.
On the new nearly completely walled-in track in Jeddah which closely resembles a typical Formula E track, Hamilton edged Red Bull’s Max Verstappen by 0.056 seconds with his Mercedes teammate, Valtteri Bottas in a close third.
Verstappen currently leads Hamilton by eight points in the Formula 1 driver’s championship with this race and the upcoming Abu Dhabi Grand Prix as the only two races remaining. With such a small points margin separating the two, a staggering variety of points combinations to the advantage of both drivers can occur in this weekend’s race and affect the standings. A Hamilton/Bottas 1-2 finish would give Hamilton the lead going into the Abu Dhabi race whereas a Verstappen victory on Sunday combined with a certain number of Hamilton placings could give Verstappen the title outright.
