Hamilton and Bottas give Mercedes front row in Saudi Arabia

Hamilton, who was fastest in both of Friday's practices, has a chance to leave Saudi Arabia tied with Verstappen in the standings if the Mercedes driver wins on Sunday and scores maximum points

Max Verstappen slapped the wall in the 27th and final turn of Formula One's newest circuit, handing the front row for the inaugural Saudi Arabian Grand Prix to Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes.

Hamilton, the seven-time world champion, jumped to the top of the qualifying board with about 80 seconds remaining in Saturday's session. Valtteri Bottas, his Mercedes teammate, then moved to second.

It gave the current championship leader one final lap around the high-speed course to try to claim pole. But the Dutchman went wide in the second turn and nearly brushed the wall, then finally gave it a hard slam in the final turn as Verstappen desperately tried to bump Hamilton and Bottas from the front row.