The most recent race was the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix which took place on March 9^th. This is one of the few races that does not happen on a Sunday, and that is because of Ramadan which was starting that Sunday. As this is only the second race of the season, constructors are still attempting to tweak their cars to get up to maximum performance. Therefore, we are still waiting to see who the top competitors will be this year, and if anyone will be able to beat Red Bull’s winning streak.

The first practice started decent with yet another win from Max Verstappen. Fernando Alonso took the second practice, but the Red Bull came back in practice three for yet another win. Most notably the performance of the Aston Martins in these practice segments was very impressive, and it was clear that their car was suited for street circuits.

Before qualifying Carlos Sainz was rushed to the hospital because of appendicitis and was unable to race for the weekend. In his place, 18-year-old Ollie Bearman (F2 driver) was set to make his F1 debut. He would be one of the youngest drivers to compete in Formula One, and pressure was on him to make it in the top 10 to score Sainz points. During qualifying both Red Bulls set impressive times earning Max the pole position for the race, and Perez third. The only thing between the two drivers was the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc. Bearman made an astonishing time for a rookie and ended up qualifying in 11^th place.

On the day of the race, Max Verstappen kept a strong hold on the lead for the majority of the start. As expected, he maintained an impressive 13-second lead in front of the rest of the drivers. But eyes were on Ollie Bearman the entire race as he had the McLaren of Lando Norris and 7-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton attempting to pass him. Bearman was able to hold the two drivers off and finish in 7^th place. This was one of the most impressive introductions to Formula One a rookie has ever had, and many constructors will be interested in signing him onto their team for the next season. The race ended with p1 for Verstappen, p2 for Perez, and p3 for Leclerc.

As many teams begin to look at new drivers for the next season it is blatantly obvious that rookies might be the way to go. There are many older drivers still racing and they seem to be underperforming. The teams that have added rookies, however, are starting to inch their way up the ladder. Ferrari just signed Lewis Hamilton, and after this weekend’s run with Ollie Bearman that choice could easily be called into question. While there are many positive aspects of having a 7-time world champion on your team, this would not be the first time they kick one off their team for a younger prospect. Many of the teams should keep an eye on Ollie Bearman because the younger drivers often offer better teamwork and better results. I would personally love to see him in the Mercedes seat that Lewis is leaving up for grabs. He not only has the talent to drive for the team but also the connections as well.

The two Red Bull cars seem to not be showing the same talent as they did last season. Their car is so much higher in performance than the rest of the track that none of the other cars are even coming close to beating their speed. They have mastered the design of the car and are only continuing to perfect it. This only worries me for the future of the sport, and the engagement it may lose going forward. Max won almost every race consistently last year and continues to maintain an unpassable lead every weekend. If you know who’s going to win the race, why watch? This has happened many times before, but never this consistently. The future of the sport and the restrictions needed for engineering will most likely be debated if this continues. But until someone decides there needs to be more rules placed upon the sport, Max will most likely continue placing p1 and win the championship.

The next race will happen this weekend in Melbourne, Australia!