Red Bull's Sergio Perez flexed his street circuit muscles with dramatic effect on Sunday by storming to victory ahead of teammate Max Verstappen at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

It was the first time that Perez had won a race with Verstappen in second place.

The 33-year-old Mexican came home 5.355 seconds clear of the defending double world champion as Red Bull reeled off a masterful one-two triumph, the Dutchman having stormed through the field from 15th on the grid.

It was Perez's fifth career win having previously triumphed in Monte Carlo and Singapore to earn his reputation as a "street fighter."

"It turned out to be tougher than expected," Perez said. "The safety car tried to take the victory from us again here, but not this year! The team did a great job. Now we must keep pushing."

Verstappen kept the championship lead by setting the fastest lap of the race, which was Verstappen's 21st consecutive finish, the longest active streak on the grid, according to formula1.com.

While the top two were clear cut, the next two places remained in confusion long after the race had finished with Fernando Alonso first stripped of third place and then reinstated in the early hours of Monday morning.

"Fernando Alonso has regained his third-place finish in the 2023 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix after Aston Martin requested a Right of Review on Sunday night," noted formula1.com.

"Alonso claimed his 100th career podium, becoming only the sixth driver in F1 history to reach this milestone, behind Lewis Hamilton, Michael Schumacher, Sebastian Vettel, Alain Prost and Kimi Raikkonen."

Alfa Romeo's Chinese racer Zhou Guanyu finished 13th, and he was classified 17th in the driver standings.

(Cover: Chinese racer Zhou Guanyu drives his Alfa Romeo car during the F1 Grand Prix of Saudi Arabia in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, March 19, 2023. /CFP)

(With input from AFP)