How three drivers 'won' the Azerbaijan GP

Formula 1's return to Baku after a year away had thrown up an eventful qualifying marred by four red flags, but the race appeared to be running to a familiar Red Bull vs Mercedes template entering the closing stages. That is, until a dramatic conclusion where victory was snatched away from two drivers, before landing in the lap of Sergio Perez

Alex Kalinauckas Jun 7, 2021, 8:26 AM

Upd: Jun 10, 2021, 6:56 AM

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Considering all that was the come, the opening lap of the 2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix was pretty much pure serenity. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc led comfortably away from pole, while Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen slotted in behind, ready to unleash their expected race pace advantage over their red rival.

Behind the top three by the end of lap one of 51 was eventual race winner Sergio Perez, who'd passed Carlos Sainz and Pierre Gasly to move up from sixth on the grid. The Ferrari was dispatched on the exit of the first corner, when Sainz lost momentum challenging Gasly on the outside line, and Perez then outdragged the AlphaTauri on the outside run down the back straight in the first sector.

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Author Alex Kalinauckas

Alex Kalinauckas is Autosport's Grand Prix Editor, covering every Formula 1 race since the start of 2020. After completing a master's degree in journalism at Goldsmiths College University of London in 2014, he worked for a range of motorsport and technology publications while covering national racing as an Autosport freelancer.

A lifelong motorsport fan - no one in his family can explain quite how or why such a development first occurred - Alex joined the Autosport staff in April 2017 as the magazine’s Assistant Editor covering Formula 2 and GP3, before being made Formula E correspondent and Autosport.com’s Plus Editor in March 2018. He lives in north-east London and is constantly frustrated by the Central Line.