Max Verstapen confirmed victory over teammate Sergio Perez at the 2022 Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix on Sunday. The final podium position was taken by George Russell of Mercedes-Benz AMG.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc started the race at the pole, and Perez was in the front row. Leclerc slowly descends from the line and then locks his brakes into turn one, allowing Perez to take the lead early.
Behind them, Verstapen was snapping Leclerc’s ankle and at the same time trying to stop Ferrari’s Carlos Sange. A catastrophic race for the Ferrari then begins in the Lap Nine when the sign stops due to hydraulic problems. As a result, the virtual safety car comes out, at which point Ferrari decides to beat Leclerc.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc at the 2022 Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix
Unfortunately for Leclerc, its stop is delayed by a stuck front jack. He finished third in the race, 12.6 seconds behind Verstappen, who was 2.0 seconds behind Perez. The two Red Bull drivers then beat Perez to 16 and Versatapen to 18. This led to Leclerc but then crashed again for a Ferrari at 20 Cole, where Leclark was forced to retire due to power unit problems. This is the first time since the 2009 Australian Grand Prix that both Ferraris have had to retire from a race due to reliability issues.
The 33 Cole will have another virtual safety car when the smiling Kevin Magnusen pulls to the side of the track as his Ferrari power unit also decides to fail. Both Red Bull drivers stop for fresh tires at this point, as Russell will soon have to defend against fellow Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton in a fight for third place. Hamilton started the race in the seventh, but was overtaken by Alfatouri’s Yuki Sunoda and then fellow Alfatouri driver Pierre Gasley, who finished fourth. Hamilton will eventually cross the finish line fourth and Gasley will be in the top five.
After eight rounds, Verstappen now has a commanding lead in the 2022 Drivers’ Championship. He sits at 129 for Perez and 116 for 150 at Leclerc. In the Constructors Championship, the Red Bulls are 279 points ahead of Ferrari 199 and Mercedes 161. The next round of the calendar is the Canadian Grand Prix this weekend.
Red Bull Racing at the 2022 Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix
Below are the full results of the 2022 Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix:
1) Max Verstapen, Red Bull Racing
2) Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing +20.823 seconds
3) George Russell, Mercedes-Benz AMG +45.995 sec
4) Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes-Benz AMG +71.679 sec
5) Pierre Gasley, Alfatouri +77.299 sec
6) Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin +84.099 sec
7) Fernando Alonso, Alpine +88.596 seconds
8) Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren +92.207 sec
9) Lando Norris, McLaren +92.556 seconds
10) Esteban Oaken, Alpine +108.184 sec
11) Valtteri Bottas, Alfa Romeo +1 lap
12) Alexander Albon, Williams +1 Lap
13) Yuki Tsunoda, AlphaTauri +1 lap
14) Mick Schumacher, Haas +1 lap
15) Nicholas Latifi, Williams +1 Lap
16) Lance Stroll, Aston Martin – DNF
NC) Kevin Magnassen, Haas – DNF
NC) Zhou Guanyu, Alfa Romeo – DNF
NC) Charles Leclerc, Ferrari – DNF
NC) Carlos Sange, Ferrari – DNF