The information demonstrating Red Bull’s actual Saudi Arabian pace
Even though Max Verstappen did not finish first in the second practice session in Saudi Arabia, a closer examination of his lap times shows why the Dutchman is still the clear favorite for the next race weekend.

After the completion of second practice in Saudi Arabia, Max Verstappen failed to beat Fernando Alonso and George Russell, suggesting that he lacked significant speed over a single lap.

Nevertheless, it was immediately doubtful if this was a typical outcome.

A similar scene was seen following free practice at the season’s first race in Bahrain just a week ago, and Verstappen went on to take pole position the following day.

His unimpressive practice pace was partially caused by Red Bull not increasing its engine power in comparison to the other competitors.

In Saudi Arabia, it appears to be the case once more; nevertheless, in the second practice, the fast corners were primarily where the difference was seen.

Because the fast corners come one after the other quickly, Verstappen lost a lot of time in the first and second sectors, where car balance is crucial.

In the third sector, Verstappen lost 0.046 seconds less than Alonso, when maximum speed is crucial. The image appears somewhat warped even if the top speed difference is quite little.

The 26-year-old Dutchman anticipated an entertaining qualifying session and confirmed that the others were driving faster.

See Alonso and Verstappen’s quickest laps below.

Red Bull is excellent for extended runs.
Verstappen had good reason to be happy with the lengthy runs. Once more, Sergio Perez, a teammate, displayed outstanding speed. Among the elite drivers, the Mexican drove the longest run on Mediums.

Verstappen’s addition to his consistently quick lap times was evident. On Mediums, the Dutch driver was the only one to record times in the 1:33s area. Charles Leclerc drove his lengthy run on Softs, yet he managed those timings too.

The typical disparity between the two Red Bull teammates was evident once more; the ease with which Verstappen cruised the course and Perez set consistent times must be agonizing for the opposition.

Alonso appeared to be closely aligned with Red Bull.

The two-time world champion clocked times that were on average almost 0.5 seconds slower.

Who could provide a challenge to Red Bull during the race? Right now, it seems like nobody. Leclerc and colleague Carlos Sainz were also far behind Verstappen, despite encouraging times from Russell.

See Russell, Perez, Alonso, and Verstappen’s lengthy careers below.