The weekend was dominated by a rocket attack that struck Jeddah on Friday, 10 miles from the track, and almost led to a boycott of the driver in the race. Disgusted by the regime’s horrific human rights record and fears for the safety of their teams, a four-hour meeting was needed Friday night before drivers finally calmed down and persuaded to race. Hamilton is believed to have been one of the drivers who strongly supported the cancellation of the race and after taking 10th place he only wanted to leave. “I’m so happy the weekend is over,” he said. “I’m so happy that everyone is safe, I’m looking forward to going out. “I just want to go home.” The race was won by Max Bull Verstappen of Red Bull, who confirmed that the matter was not closed and that the drivers would once again seek answers from F1 regarding a meeting that has signed a contract for more than a decade. “We had a lot of guarantees that of course it would be safe, but after this weekend all the drivers together, we will talk to F1 and the team bosses to see what happens in the future,” he said. F1 is very willing to continue racing in Saudi Arabia, given the reported $ 900 million contract they have to do, but the boost from drivers after this weekend is evident. “I am just happy to be free [to have got through the weekend]Said McLaren’s Lando Norris. “It’s a nervous place to be and you will have those nerves.” Carlos Sainz was third for Ferrari and Sergio Pérez fourth for Red Bull, with George Russell fifth for Mercedes. Esteban Ocon was sixth for Alpine, Norris seventh for McLaren, Pierre Gasly eighth for AlphaTauri and Magnussen ninth for Haas.
