Red Bull driver Max Verstappen tops FP2 in Jeddah ahead of Sunday’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen continued his red-hot form to top the FP2 standings under the lights ahead of Sunday’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in Jeddah.

Verstappen’s team-mate Sergio Perez finished third with Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso sandwiched in between, a narrow 0.208 seconds adrift of the current champion.

When an engineer asked if the problem occurred on any particular areas of the track, Verstappen answered: “The last corner is really ****.”

BWT Alpine’s Esteban Ocon finished the day in fourth while Mercedes’ George Russell wrapped up the top five.

Charles Leclerc was quick enough for the top 10 where he finished 9th, but will endure a 10-place grid penalty due to his retirement from the season-opening race in Bahrain.

Pierre Gasly (Alpine), Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) and Nico Hulkenberg (Haas) finished in positions six, seven and eight respectively.

FP2 STANDINGS

• 1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
• 2. Fernando Alonso (Ferrari)
• 3. Sergio Perez (Red Bull)
• 4. Esteban Ocon (Alpine)
• 5. George Russell (Mercedes)
• 6. Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
• 7. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
• 8. Nico Hulkenberg (Haas)
• 9. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
• 10. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)
• 11. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
• 12. Lando Norris (McLaren)
• 13. Yuki Tsunoda (Alpha Tauri)
• 14. Alex Albon (Williams)
• 15. Kevin Magnussen (Haas)
• 16. Zhou Guanyu (Alfa Romeo)
• 17. Nyck de Vries (Alpha Tauri)
• 18. Logan Sargeant (Williams)
• 19. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
• 20. Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo)