F1 Azerbaijan GP: Perez overtakes Leclerc for sprint race victory

Safety Car Period Halts the Race

An early safety car period paused the race when Yuki Tsunoda collided with the wall at Turn 14 during the first lap, severely damaging his right-rear tire.

The incident seemed to be the result of contact with his AlphaTauri teammate, Nyck de Vries, which also damaged his front wing.

Initially, a virtual safety car emerged to address the debris, but it eventually evolved into a full-blown safety car, resuming the race on lap six after the debris was cleared.

Leclerc maintained his lead after the restart, but Perez remained close behind.

Once DRS became available, Perez seized his chance, reeling in Leclerc on the straight and sweeping past him to take the lead.

Despite Leclerc's efforts to regain his position, Perez capitalized on his superior straight-line speed, gradually breaking away from the Ferrari driver.

Verstappen's Charge Hampered by Early Damage

Reigning champion Max Verstappen faced a challenging race, sustaining damage during a first-lap skirmish with Mercedes' George Russell.

Although Verstappen dropped to fourth momentarily, he fought his way back to third place after the safety car restart.

Despite closing in on Leclerc, Verstappen couldn't gain enough ground to challenge for second place.

George Russell secured fourth place, followed by Carlos Sainz in fifth, who had an intense battle with Lewis Hamilton.

Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll claimed seventh and eighth positions, respectively, with Stroll executing a daring move to pass Alex Albon.

Oscar Piastri rounded out the top 10, overtaking teammate Lando Norris, who later pitted and turned his race into a test session.

Azerbaijan GP Sprint Race Results

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