There isn’t a value labeled ‘Souffle’. Alonso and Aston Martin continue to defy expectations, grabbing every chance to leave rivals impressed. After earning their first podium in Bahrain two weeks earlier, the next stop on the calendar, Jeddah’s rapid street circuit in Saudi Arabia, was billed as a stern test for those traveling from Silverstone. Yet the Spanish driver’s resolve and the team’s stamina produced another small triumph as Alonso is set to start second (18:00) and challenge Red Bull’s Sergio Pérez. Max Verstappen faced a rare setback, eliminated in Q2 after a swerving misstep that unsettled his run.
Carlos Sainz also found a strong window to chase pole, but a late challenge from Russell disrupted his momentum on a comeback, leaving the Madrid-born driver in fifth. Teammate Charles Leclerc, currently second behind Pérez, lined up fourth – or third if Russell faces a sanction for a prior issue involving Ferrari’s electronic control unit after its third replacement.
Q1: Aston Martin Recital
Free practice had signaled a tense midfield fight, with Ferrari and Mercedes staring up at Red Bull’s dominance and Aston Martin quietly showing pace through Alonso and Stroll since Friday. The session’s mood suggested risk of another engine issue, particularly for Leclerc and Ferrari, who preferred careful power management before a final push later in the weekend. In Q1, Verstappen’s pace stood out, delivering the fastest time from the outset (1:28.7) and setting a high bar just ahead of Pérez by a clear margin.
Aston Martin remained in the mix, with Alonso and Stroll intent on defying forecasts of trouble for the circuit that ranked second on the calendar and proved very different from Bahrain, where Alonso had claimed his season’s first podium. Fernando began strong again, securing third place, while Stroll finished just behind him in fourth, with Leclerc and Sainz’s Ferraris occupying the top positions around them. Norris, hit by a wall contact, signaled the event’s rough nature, while McLaren’s day ended in disappointment alongside Williams drivers Sargeant and Albon, and AlphaTauri pair Tsunoda and De Vries, all out in Q1.
Q2: KO of Verstappen
The second qualifying round brought a major twist when Verstappen had to halt his car near the end of sector one due to a technical hiccup, forcing Red Bull to concede a setback for their champion. At that moment, Alonso topped the times (1:28.757), with Pérez and Leclerc close behind as the midfield battled for a spot in Q3. Sainz pressed to join the fast fours, aided by a surge of pace from the Ferraris and the Mercedes trio hovering nearby.
The Spaniard executed a final push on his last attempt in a tense scramble among the fastest four or five, while Zhou, Bottas, Magnussen, Hulkenberg, and Verstappen ultimately missed Q3 after Red Bull’s garage drama and the late-race pressure. The second phase thus narrowed the field, setting up a dramatic decisive session for pole.
Q3: Alonso and Sainz for all
The second pole battle of the season kicked off with the absence of the defending champion and a notable double Spanish challenge, as Alonso and Sainz led the way alongside other top contenders. The initial runs saw Fernando taking the provisional lead (1:28.757), only for Leclerc to steal the initiative with a quick lap that put him ahead of Russell. Sainz’s first run failed to hit the mark, and Pérez then produced a blistering lap (1:28.265) that briefly crowned him pole before the others chased again.
Red Bull appeared intent on defending their supremacy in the absence of their teammate, with Pérez pressing hard to hold the top spot. Sainz had to abort a flying lap when blocked by Russell, while Alonso pushed hard in his final sector to secure second place for Aston Martin. Leclerc ultimately topped the times, but due to a penalty levied against a rival, Alonso rose to first place, leaving Leclerc in second, with the rest of the field left to scramble for the last few positions.