Opportunities in Saudi Arabia: 'If something happens Max will be there'

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13:50, 28 Nov 2021

Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton have two more Grands Prix to secure the world title. Next week a race in Saudi Arabia is scheduled, where circuit designer Carsten Tilke is looking forward to.

As it is the first time that the Formula 1 circus takes place there, it is difficult for the teams and analysts to predict the chances of Mercedes and Red Bull Racing. The track has a section with fast corners, but also a long straight that Mercedes seems to be better at.

Tilke therefore hardly dares to say in advance which team is the favourite, he said in an interview with TalkSport.com. "Verstappen is in front and we have a street circuit where you can touch the walls easily, and if something happens Verstappen will be there, it's really, really close and can go both ways," he explained.

Hamilton and Verstappen run crucial race

Verstappen still has just an eight-point lead in the World Championship, so he will be hoping to outperform his rival Hamilton in Saudi Arabia. "I think it's impossible to predict, we don't know, we will see who will manage to cope with the new track, it will be challenging for them."

Pos.	Driver	Team	Points
1	Kimi Antonelli Kimi Antonelli	MercedesMER	156
2	Lewis Hamilton Lewis Hamilton	FerrariFER	90
3	George Russell George Russell	MercedesMER	88
4	Charles Leclerc Charles Leclerc	FerrariFER	75
5	Oscar Piastri Oscar Piastri	McLarenMCL	60
6	Lando Norris Lando Norris	McLarenMCL	58
7	Max Verstappen Max Verstappen	Red Bull RacingRBR	43
8	Isack Hadjar Isack Hadjar	Red Bull RacingRBR	29
9	Liam Lawson Liam Lawson	Racing BullsRCB	26
10	Pierre Gasly Pierre Gasly	AlpineALP	26
11	Oliver Bearman Oliver Bearman	HaasHAA	18
12	Franco Colapinto Franco Colapinto	AlpineALP	15
13	Arvid Lindblad Arvid Lindblad	Racing BullsRCB	13
14	Carlos Sainz Carlos Sainz	WilliamsWIL	6
15	Alexander Albon Alexander Albon	WilliamsWIL	5
16	Esteban Ocon Esteban Ocon	HaasHAA	3
17	Gabriel Bortoleto Gabriel Bortoleto	AudiAUD	2
18	Fernando Alonso Fernando Alonso	Aston MartinAST	1
19	Nico Hulkenberg Nico Hulkenberg	AudiAUD	0
20	Valtteri Bottas Valtteri Bottas	CadillacCAD	0
21	Sergio Perez Sergio Perez	CadillacCAD	0
22	Lance Stroll Lance Stroll	Aston MartinAST	0

Opportunities in Saudi Arabia: 'If something happens Max will be there'

Hamilton and Verstappen run crucial race

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