AZERBAIJAN GP - RACE - RE-CAP & RESULTS
7 retirements ended dreams and podium hopes for some, while others were victorious with points and records that were broken.
The race started off with multiple accidents within the first few laps. Sirotkin crashed into Perez, earning him a 3-Place-Grid-Penalty for the upcoming Spanish Grand Prix. Moments later, Ocon and Raikkonen collided in what was deemed a 'racing incident', although each driver had their own opinion on what happened.
Sirotkin picked up debris from the crash and then collided with Alonso. Alonso ended up with a double puncture from the accident. Magnussen got hit by Ericsson and ended up with a double puncture as well.
Sirotkin and Ocon both retired from the damage of their accidents, while Raikkonen was able to escape the same fate and continue on, in the hopes of catching up.
Nico Hulkenberg was the next retirement after he got it wrong around a corner and crashed into the wall. He took fault for the accident, which was just an unlucky mistake. Team-mate, Sainz, had a better race and finished up in 5th, bringing 10 points to the team.
The Red Bull duo ended their podium hopes by colliding with each-other at high speeds. Ricciardo ended up catching air off of the back of Verstappen's car and the two were sent spinning into one of the run-off areas. They were each given a reprimand, but according to Helmut Marko, the two will continue to be allowed to race each other.
Romain Grosjean was the next to drop off after he made a mistake and crashed into the wall during the safety car. He claimed Ericsson hit him, but replays show the Sauber passing by, much after Grosjean's Haas was already in the wall.
Bottas, who was on the hunt for the win after gaining the lead off of Vettel, who had previously been in first, had a sudden and shocking retirement when he suffered a random tyre puncture. The tyre exploded and there wasn't much he could do, being too far away from the pit-lane.
Lewis Hamilton moved into the lead, following the retirement of Bottas and Raikkonen moved up to second, while Perez in the lone Force India, found himself in third. Perez had earlier served a time penalty in the pits for overtaking during one of the many safety car periods.
On the final lap, Kevin Magnussen found himself in more trouble as he collided with Gasly as the two eagerly tried to grab onto the final point. Magnussen squeezed Gasly over too far and the two collided. They were both still able to finish the race, but it was dangerous and Magnussen ended up with a 10-Second-Time-Penalty added to his final race time.
Following the race, Perez and multiple other drivers were summoned to the stewards for what appeared to be illegal use of DRS. Perez, Magnussen and Stroll were all let free and Perez was able to keep his 3rd place finish, earning him a new record. Perez has surpassed all other Mexican F1 drivers for most podiums with a total of 8.
Also breaking a record was Charles Leclerc, who got his first F1 points of the season by finishing in 6th. A remarkable achievement for him and for the Swiss team. Leclerc is now the first Monegasque driver to score points since 1950.
Brendon Hartley also came away from the race with his first ever F1 championship point, by finishing in 10th. Ericsson and Gasly were the only two behind Hartley to finish the race.
Alonso, Stroll, Vettel and Vandoorne also took home points.
The first In-Season test will take place over the course of two days, following the Spanish Grand Prix.
RESULTS:
1. Lewis Hamilton / Mercedes-Mercedes / Great Britain / + 25 Points
2. Kimi Raikkonen / Ferrari-Ferrari / Finland / + 18 Points
3. Sergio Perez / Force India-Mercedes / Mexico / + 15 Points
4. Sebastian Vettel / Ferrari-Ferrari / Germany / + 12 Points
5. Carlos Sainz / Renault-Renault / Spain / + 10 Points
6. Charles Leclerc / Sauber-Ferrari / Monaco / + 8 Points
7. Fernando Alonso / McLaren-Renault / Spain / + 6 Points
8. Lance Stroll / Williams-Mercedes / Canada / + 4 Points
9. Stoffel Vandoorne / McLaren-Renault / Belgium / + 2 Points
10. Brendon Hartley / Scuderia Toro Rosso-Honda / New Zealand / + 1 Point
11. Marcus Ericsson / Sauber-Ferrari / Sweden
12. Pierre Gasly / Scuderia Toro Rosso-Honda / France
13. Kevin Magnussen / Haas-Ferrari / Denmark*
14. Valtteri Bottas / Mercedes-Mercedes / Finland / DNF / Puncture**
RETIRED - Romain Grosjean / Haas-Ferrari / France / Crash
RETIRED - Max Verstappen / Red Bull Racing-TAG-Heuer / Netherlands / Collision
RETIRED - Daniel Ricciardo / Red Bull Racing-TAG-Heuer / Australia / Collision
RETIRED - Nico Hulkenberg / Renault-Renault / Germany / Crash
RETIRED - Esteban Ocon / Force India-Mercedes / France / Collision
RETIRED - Sergey Sirotkin / Williams-Mercedes / Russia / Collision
* - (Magnussen) 10-Second-Time-Penalty added to final race time for causing a collision with Gasly
** - Notes Bottas finished at least 90% of the race distance and was qualified as finishing the race despite his retirement
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Article Written By: Amy Hawk
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