Piastri takes lead in driver standings with Saudi GP victory

McLaren's Oscar Piastri was victorious at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on Sunday and moved into first place in the driver standings.

Red Bull's Max Verstappen finished second, while Ferrari's Charles Leclerc outlasted McLaren's Lando Norris for third.

Piastri began the race in second position and attempted to pass Verstappen on Turn 1, with the Red Bull driver leaving the track to keep his position. He was given a five-second penalty for the action, allowing Piastri to pass him later in the race following a pit stop.

"It was a pretty tough race. Very happy to have won," Piastri said after the victory.

"Once I got on the inside, I was not coming out of Turn 1 in second. In the end, that is what got me the race, so very happy with the work we do on the starts."

The first lap also saw a collision between Alpine's Pierre Gasly and Red Bull's Yuki Tsunoda, who were both forced to retire from the race.

Norris, who started in 10th position after crashing during qualifying, quickly made his way through the field and finished a little over a second behind Leclerc to secure 12 points. Norris is 10 points behind his teammate, Piastri, for top position in the driver standings, while Verstappen is third.

F1 driver standings

Piastri is the first Australian driver to lead the standings since Mark Webber in 2010. Webber is Piastri's manager.

Leclerc's third-place finish secured the 44th podium of his career, tying him with Fernando Alonso for the fifth-most podiums in Ferrari history, according to theScore's Daniel Valente.