Hamilton struggles | British F1 press reacts to Saudi Arabian GP

The 2022 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix will be remembered for years with the incredible battle for the lead between Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc that will surely go down as one of the classic battles for the lead. Despite the great show, controversy was the main focus of the GP, and here's what the British press has to say;

The Guardian

Verstappen and Leclerc duelled for the win for the last ten laps of the Grand Prix with great intelligence and intensity, The Guardian writes on the instant-classic battle. "Having battled brilliantly already at the season opener in Bahrain, when the two went wheel to wheel for the final, decisive laps, F1’s young generation gave decisive notice the sport is in rude health in their hands, These were competitors trying not only to outdrive but to outthink, to outfox one another while racing at the fastest street circuit on the calendar and it was fascinating."

The Daily Mail

Aside from the fantastic battle for the lead, the shocking performance of Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton was another focus of the race, The Daily Mail writes on the gap between Red Bull and Ferrari to the Silver Arrows. "These two teams are in a league of two, a point graphically demonstrated to Lewis Hamilton, who finished 10th. It was a decent drive and he was hindered by some ill-luck. Even at this putative stage, the 37-year-old Briton all but wrote off his chances of winning an eighth world title this year. His Mercedes team-mate George Russell peddled well to fifth but he was still more than half a minute adrift."

BBC Sport

Hamilton and Mercedes' lack of pace was a talking point from BBC Sport, after the reigning champion's embarassing showing in Saudi Arabia. "The world champions themselves are not so sure about that. This was another difficult weekend for them. On pace, they are in no-man's land behind the top two teams and ahead of the rest, and that's where George Russell finished in fifth place. Set-up problems relegated Hamilton to 15th on the grid. He was more competitive in the race, but still could manage only 10th, not helped by a mix-up about whether to pit just before the VSC was deployed. The big concern for Mercedes is that they still don't have the answers they need to unlock the pace they believe they have in the car - and are still not sure it is there at all."

The Sun

Sergio Perez started the Grand Prix from pole position and looked to be in command of the race until an untimely Safety Car dropped him down to fourth, The Sun writes. "Sergio Perez, who had started on pole and looked comfortable in front, had just stopped for tyres as Latifi's crash resulted in the safety car being deployed. When he returned to the race track, he had dropped to fourth place as his rivals all stopped for fresh tyres. It was terrible cruel luck for the Mexican, who had taken his first ever pole the previous day."