Mercedes does it again, finishing 1-2 for the fourth consecutive time, with Bottas and Hamilton splitting victories.
BAKU, Azerbaijan- April 28th: What a difference a year makes! Just a year ago, Valtteri Bottas was in the lead with just three laps to go at the Grand Prix of Azerbaijan. Then the Finn punctured a tire and was out of the race, giving the victory to Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton.
On Sunday redemption was in hand for Bottas. He held off his teammate by 1.5 seconds to win the Grand Prix and take a one-point lead over Hamilton after four rounds of the 21-race season. Sebastian Vettel took third in his Ferrari, while Max Verstappen took fourth for Red Bull-Honda.
For Bottas, it’s the fifth victory of his career and second of the season. “It was a tough race and I did not make any mistakes,” he said. “But we had everything under control, and I was happy to take the checkered flag.”
Bottas took the lead following an intense scrap with Hamilton in the first two laps. But while both Mercedes took a pit stop on Lap 18, Ferrari decided to keep Charles Leclerc out for a bit longer. That enabled Leclerc to rack up a huge gap–as high as 18 seconds–before his tires began to wear down.
Bottas, who was in second, began to reel him in within 15 laps from the finish. Hamilton did as well. The Ferrari driver pitted for tires and never got any closer to the front of the grid, finishing the race in fifth.
Mercedes’ Bottas and Hamilton finish 1-2 in Baku (photo by VALDRIN XHEMAJ/EPA-EFE/REX (10220558s)
In a race that’s usually full of attrition, this time only one virtual safety car came out on Lap 40 when Red Bull’s Pierre Gasly lost power in his Honda engine and pulled out of the way of traffic. Besides Gasly, Rich Energy Haas F1 Team’s Romain Grosjean retired with brake issues.
But bigger news came when Renault’s Daniel Ricciardo and Dani Kvyat of Toro Rosso both went off at turn three. The Australian backed into the Russian, damaging both cars. Ricciardo in his clumsiness will be penalized three grid positions at the next race in Spain.
In the top ten, Racing Point’s Sergio Perez and Lance Stroll finished sixth and ninth, respectively, and McLaren took seventh and eighth with Carlos Sainz Jr. followed by Lando Norris. Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Raikkonen finished the last point position in tenth. Haas driver, Kevin Magnussen, finished the race in 13th.
The victorious Mercedes team thought it would get a big challenge in Baku from Ferrari, but it didn’t turn out that way. So far this year, Bottas has won two races and Hamilton the same. But the Finn wants things to continue the way they are, especially now that he is leading the drivers’ championship.
“It obviously means a lot,” Bottas said. “And it’s great for the team to perform the way it is now. I am proud to be part of that, and we are performing really well. I hope that it will carry on.”
The Grand Prix of Spain is next on the schedule. The race will be run on Sunday, May 12.
