Lewis Hamilton makes more history despite woeful weekend as Max Verstappen celebrates landmark

Hamilton in Jeddah — Photo: © LAT Images

Saudi Arabian Grand Prix

Hamilton makes more history despite woeful weekend as Verstappen celebrates landmark

GPFans looks at the best stats and facts from the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix weekend

GPFans Staff

Monday 28 March 2022 11:35

Max Verstappen got the upper hand over Charles Leclerc to win a fascinating Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

The pair battled as they did in Bahrain a week before but unlike in the season-opener, it was the Red Bull driver that emerged on top as a focus on straight-line speed paid dividends.

With stories up and down the grid, GPFans brings you the best stats and facts from Jeddah.

Perez makes F1 history for Mexico

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The race may have turned sour for Sergio Perez due to the unfortunate timing of a safety car period that took away his lead but the Mexican had already made F1 history on Saturday as he became the first driver from his country to score pole position.

Mexico is the 23rd different nation to clinch pole in the sport, whilst the 215 race wait for top spot ensures Perez now holds the record for the longest wait, alongside the corresponding record for race wins having completed 190 races before winning in Sakhir 2020.

Verstappen going global

Reigning champion Verstappen took his 21st career victory to tie for 15th all-time with Kimi Raikkonen.

The duo are also locked on the number of different circuits they have taken victory at, with the Jeddah Corniche Circuit Verstappen's 15th unique venue he has won at.

That ties him for ninth alongside the Finn, 1996 world champion Damon Hill and three-time champion Niki Lauda.

Red Bull Powertrains off the mark

Verstappen's win was also the first win for Red Bull's Powertrain department since taking over where Honda left off.

Red Bull has become the 21st different manufacturer to take an F1 victory.

Dutch celebration

The victory for Verstappen came on a special anniversary for his family.

28 years before - to the day - father Jos made his F1 debut at the 1994 Brazilian Grand Prix.

Small margins lead to big rewards

After their enthralling tussle, the gap between Verstappen and Leclerc at the finish was a mere 0.549secs.

It was the closest finish the sport has seen since Pierre Gasly held off Carlos Sainz at the 2020 Italian Grand Prix.

The Frenchman won that day by 0.415secs.

Ferrari back on form

Leclerc and Sainz both finished on the podium to ensure Ferrari stays on top of the standings table after two races.

The double podiums in both Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are the first consecutive top threes for the Scuderia since Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel managed the feat in Austria and Great Britain in 2018.

United Kingdom surpasses milestone

With George Russell, Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton all finishing in the points, the United Kingdom has surpassed 10,000 points in F1.

The tally stands at 10,001.78, with Germany in second with 7,897.50.

Haas on the up

Kevin Magnussen's ninth-place finish in Saudi Arabia means Haas has scored in consecutive races for the first time since doing the same in Spain and Monaco in 2019.

Hamilton breaks yet another record

Seven-time champion Hamilton started his 180th race for Mercedes at Jeddah, surpassing the total races started by the legendary Michael Schumacher and Ferrari partnership.

It was the first time since the Korean Grand Prix in 2012 that Hamilton had finished in 10th.