Sergio Pérez on pole for Saudi Arabian F1 GP after Max Verstappen falters

• Engine failure sees defending champion start in 15th
• Red Bull teammate Pérez joined on front row by Charles Leclerc

Max Verstappen has repeatedly warned against believing his Red Bull team held all the cards in the opening rounds of the new Formula One season. It was a guarded stance that looked unnecessarily wary but the Dutchman’s caution proved all too prescient when he was forced to retire from qualifying at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. His teammate, Sergio Pérez, duly stepped up to take pole but the mechanical failure of the Red Bull is a first chink in the armour that will provide succour to the teams languishing in their wake.

Verstappen had yet to bettered in any session at the Jeddah Corniche circuit and looked nailed on to take pole until a driveshaft problem forced him to crawl back to the pits and climb dejectedly from his car. Having had transmission problems in Bahrain, serious questions will be asked at Red Bull as to whether there is an issue with their car’s design.