Race preview: Saudi Arabian Grand Prix

Everything you need to know about Albono’s upcoming visit to Jeddah

Published

16 APR 2025

Est. reading time

3 min

Alex will be looking to get back amongst the points when he heads to Saudi Arabia this weekend. Albono finished outside the top ten for the first time in 2025 last time out, but has an immediate opportunity to improve on that P12 placing at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit.

In the last of three consecutive race weekends before a brief pause in the calendar, AA23 can add to an impressive current tally of 18 points during Round 5. Here’s everything you need to know about the upcoming Saudi Arabian Grand Prix…

Previous visits to Jeddah

The first-ever Saudi Arabian GP took place in December 2021, so it’s a relatively recent addition to Formula 1. That means Alex has only driven in Jeddah on three occasions — all with Atlassian Williams Racing. Our Thai racer is yet to pick up any points at this venue but came remarkably close last season, when he narrowly missed out on the top ten by placing P11. He will be keen to go one better this weekend, then, and should be confident of doing so after a strong start to the 2025 campaign.

Track guide

Speed is the name of the game at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit — it’s the fastest street circuit on the Formula 1 calendar. That inevitably leads to high-speed thrills aplenty when the Saudi Arabian GP rolls around each year, but there’s more to this venue than straightforward rapid racing.

For starters, the 6.174 km (3.836 miles) track has more corners than any other current Grand Prix, with a remarkable 27 turns. Sector 1 features a testing set of ten quick direction changes, before a sweeping 180-degree hairpin as we enter Sector 2. Then there’s the dramatic braking zone in the final stages of each lap, which ensures plenty of wheel-to-wheel action on the banks of the Red Sea.

Alex’s thoughts

Alex is looking to take the positives from Round 4 in Bahrain, as he prepares for the Saudi Arabian GP. Speaking ahead of this weekend's race in Jeddah, he said:

"Although Bahrain was an unfortunate weekend for the team, we came away having learned a lot and had really strong race pace. We’ll be looking to apply those learnings as we head to Saudi Arabia for the final race of the triple-header. Jeddah is one of the fastest street circuits on the calendar, so there’s little room for error. This year, the gaps are so tight that Qualifying and the race must be as close to perfect as possible to get points, so we need to give it everything we have in order to fight it out in the midfield."

Stay up to date

Follow every minute of the action via our live blog on the AA23 website and app. We’ll keep you up to date with Alex’s progress in Free Practice, Quali and Sunday’s main event, so you’re in the loop while he’s in Saudi Arabia.

FP1 starts at 4.30pm local time (AST), ahead of FP2 at 8pm. FP3 then gets under way at 4.30pm on Saturday, before Qualifying at 8pm. The race itself begins at 8pm AST on Sunday. And don’t forget to add our latest ‘Albono’ stamp to your Fan Passport, too. You can do that by clicking the link below.

The Saudi Albono is ready to collect!

Enjoy the weekend’s racing!