How Verstappen learned to combat Leclerc’s detection zone tactics in Saudi thriller

For the second Formula 1 race in a row, Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen contested a thrilling battle for victory that involved multiple passes through DRS detection zones. But, unlike in Bahrain, it was Verstappen who won out in Jeddah to get Red Bull's title challenge back on track

Three spikes of oversteer went a long way to deciding the captivating contest in the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

A sign that the rear tyres on Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari were beginning to cry mercy, the back end of his F1-75 squirmed out of line just a little when he turned into the final corner five laps from home. Then the rubber broke traction again, this time as the power was applied the other side of the apex. One tour later, the back axle tried to overtake the front once more as he entered Turn 27.

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Author Matt Kew

Matt Kew is Autosport’s F1 Editor, a role he has held since March 2022 following stints covering Formula E, Extreme E and the British Touring Car Championship.

Matt joined Autosport in 2018 to work predominantly on the magazine, but his relentless quoting of Alan Partridge meant office colleagues soon thought he would be better-suited to increased field work.

Needless to say, Matt had the last laugh when he won the Motorsport UK Young Journalist of the Year Award in 2019.

His interest in motorsport was sparked by regular trips to watch ASCAR crash around Rockingham’s banked oval.

Matt read politics and philosophy at the University of Sheffield - receiving first-class honours for his dissertation assessing the lack of female participation in top-tier motor racing.

He covered a wide variety of national race and rally meetings for Autosport as a freelancer before joining full-time. His best efforts to argue the merits of historic racing are undone by a questionable taste in music and James Bond actors.