NEWS
Russell Wins in Baku by Two Tenths Ahead of Verstappen!
It's the first race for the Mercedes driver where he leads every lap. However, it gets very tight at the end.
George Russell wins the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and celebrates his third victory of the season! Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar finish on the podium behind him.
At the start, polesitter Russell gets away well, with Oscar Piastri overtaking Charles Leclerc behind him. The Red Bull cars also perform well in the early stages, with Hadjar and Verstappen already in third and fourth place by lap five, Verstappen overtaking his teammate shortly after.
Championship leader Kimi Antonelli, on the other hand, who started from only 16th place after a crash in qualifying, struggles and only slowly gains positions, yet he is in the points for the first time on lap 18.
Two Consecutive Safety Car Periods
It's a bitter afternoon for Aston Martin, as both Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso have to retire their cars before half-distance. Up front, Russell pulls away without problems, while the Red Bulls cannot get past Piastri.
Norris then brakes too late, Antonelli capitalizes and slips past. On lap 31, a crucial situation in the race unfolds: Alexander Albon crashes heavily into the barrier. Virtually all drivers use the safety car period for a tire change, with no changes in position.
At the restart, Verstappen gets past Piastri, and there's a crash at the back, leading to the next safety car. Lando Norris was taken out of the race in the crash after Franco Colapinto braked too late.
Russell Remains Flawless in Tight Final Battle
The second restart goes without incident, but Piastri brakes too late on lap 40 and runs wide, Hadjar benefits and moves into third place.
In the final phase, there is a tight race between Russell and the pursuing Verstappen, but in the end, the Mercedes driver stays just ahead and celebrates the eighth Grand Prix victory of his career with a 0.1-second lead. While Valtteri Bottas also crashes into the barrier on the last lap, Antonelli finishes fifth.
In the championship standings, Antonelli remains clearly in the lead with 302 points, followed by Russell 66 points behind. Lewis Hamilton, Norris, Leclerc, and Verstappen follow.
