Jeddah Chess at 250 km/h: Piastri's Undercut and Leclerc’s Overcut Ignite a Jeddah Thriller

The Jeddah Corniche Circuit provided an absolute tactical masterclass for Round 5 of the 2025 Formula 1 season. On a street circuit known for its blistering high-speed sweeps and unforgiving walls, the strategic battle was defined by exceptionally low tyre degradation and extreme variance in pit-stop windows. In a race of micro-gaps, Oscar Piastri's perfectly timed undercut and Charles Leclerc's bold overcut extension turned a standard one-stop race into a breathtaking three-way sprint to the checkered flag, with the top three finishers separated by a mere 0.350 seconds.

The Top Two Tyre Strategies

The smooth asphalt of the Jeddah circuit and the highly durable tyre compounds selected for the weekend led to two primary strategic paths, both yielding outstanding performances.

1. The Standard Medium-to-Hard One-Stop

This was the baseline strategy for the vast majority of the grid, utilized by 12 of the 20 starters—including eight of the top ten finishers. The low thermal degradation of the Medium tyre allowed drivers to easily manage their opening stints while maintaining competitive pace, before transitioning to the Hard compound to run to the end of the 50-lap grand prix.

• Key Drivers: Oscar Piastri (P1), Max Verstappen (P2), Charles Leclerc (P3), George Russell (P5), Andrea Kimi Antonelli (P6), Lewis Hamilton (P7), Carlos Sainz (P8), Alexander Albon (P9).
• Execution: For most, the pit window opened on Lap 18 and closed by Lap 23. Oscar Piastri triggered the leading group's stops on Lap 19, followed closely by George Russell on Lap 20 and Max Verstappen on Lap 21. Charles Leclerc, however, executed an extreme variation of this strategy, extending his Medium stint all the way to Lap 29 before switching to the Hard compound.
• Effectiveness: This strategy proved to be the winning choice. By managing the transition phase and taking advantage of the Hard tyre’s durability, Oscar Piastri was able to defend his lead, while Leclerc used the massive tyre offset from his extended first stint to mount a ferocious late-race charge.

2. The Reverse Hard-to-Medium One-Stop

Four drivers chose to swim against the current by starting on the Hard tyre and running an ultra-long first stint, aiming to exploit the speed of fresh Medium tyres at the end of the race when fuel loads were at their lowest.

• Key Drivers: Lando Norris (P4), Isack Hadjar (P10), Nico Hülkenberg (P15), Lance Stroll (P16).
• Execution: Lando Norris and Isack Hadjar stayed out during the early Safety Car period (deployed on Lap 1 for a collision involving Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda) and ran a grueling 34-lap opening stint on the Hard compound. Norris inherited the race lead on Lap 30 as the Medium-starters pitted, leading the race for four laps before stopping on Lap 34 for fresh Mediums.
• Effectiveness: Highly effective. Lando Norris used his tyre advantage to unleash devastating pace in his final 16-lap stint. On Lap 41, Norris clocked a blistering 1:31.778, which stood as the fastest lap of the Grand Prix. This pace allowed him to slice through the pack, overtaking George Russell to secure P4 after starting from P10. Hadjar also capitalized on this strategy to claim the final point in P10.

Standout Tactical Calls

Piastri’s Perfect Undercut (Lap 19)

Before the pit stops, Max Verstappen held a slim lead of approximately 0.35 seconds over Oscar Piastri. With track position being paramount in Jeddah, McLaren made the bold decision to pull Piastri into the pits on Lap 19 to bolt on a fresh set of Hards. Red Bull chose not to cover immediately, leaving Verstappen out for two additional laps.

This decision proved costly for Red Bull. Piastri utilized the immediate grip of the fresh Hard compound to record a strong out-lap and a 1:33.795 on Lap 21. When Verstappen finally pitted on Lap 21 and re-emerged on Lap 22, the undercut had done its work; Piastri had jumped the Dutchman and established a lead of nearly a second. This single strategic decision decided the race, as Piastri managed his tyres flawlessly to hold off Verstappen by a microscopic 0.225 seconds at the line.

Leclerc’s Ferrari Marathon (Laps 1–29)

While McLaren and Red Bull battled with tight undercuts, Charles Leclerc and Ferrari played the long game. Leclerc stretched his opening stint on the Medium tyre to 29 laps—10 laps longer than Piastri and eight longer than Verstappen. Remarkably, Leclerc's lap times did not drop; his pace actually improved from a 1:34.428 on Lap 5 to a 1:33.368 on Lap 28 as fuel burned off, demonstrating virtually zero tyre degradation.

Leclerc pitted on Lap 29 and emerged in P5, 17.338 seconds behind the leading Piastri. With a massive 10-lap tyre age advantage, the Monegasque driver tore through the deficit. In the final 10 laps, Leclerc was consistently several tenths quicker than the leaders, erasing the gap entirely to finish in P3, just 0.350 seconds behind Piastri. Had the race been a single lap longer, Leclerc’s tyre offset likely would have won him the Grand Prix.

Strategic Struggles

Mercedes’ Defensive Slide

George Russell started P3 but fell victim to the aggressive pit windows of his rivals. Pitting on Lap 20 placed him in no-man's land—undercut by Piastri and subsequently passed by Verstappen. In the second half of the race, Russell’s older Hard tyres began to lose their edge, leaving him powerless to defend against a charging Lando Norris on fresh Mediums. Russell slid to P5, illustrating how a conservative one-stop can leave a driver vulnerable to aggressive compound offsets.

The Lap 1 Safety Car Gamble

An early collision on Lap 1 prompted a Safety Car that lasted until Lap 3. Sensing an opportunity, Esteban Ocon (starting P19), Gabriel Bortoleto (starting P20), and Jack Doohan (starting P17) immediately pitted on Lap 1 to switch from Mediums to Hards. The plan was to run a heroic 48-to-49-lap stint on a single set of Hards.

While Ocon and Bortoleto demonstrated the Hard tyre's astonishing durability by finishing the race on that single set (completing 49 and 48 laps respectively), the lack of tyre temperature warm-up under the Safety Car and the extreme stint length compromised their overall pace. Ocon managed P14 and Bortoleto P18, but they remained far from the points. Doohan’s gamble failed completely; his tyres degraded severely, forcing a second stop on Lap 32 for another set of Hards, which relegated him to P17.

Tyre Strategy Summary Table

The table below outlines the tyre compounds, stint lengths, pit stop laps, and final positions for all competitors in the 2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.