[ad_1]
Safely leading Russell, the substitute driver for Lewis Hamilton, who is already world champion, had teammate Valtteri Bottas’ tires adjusted by mistake during a pit stop, and the 22-year-old Brit finally had to settle for ninth place immediately behind the Finn.
Former Williams driver Russell, who was allowed to replace Hamilton at Silver Arrows, who was stopped due to a CoV infection in the second race in Bahrain, was on a long-winning round after an excellent start and impeccable driving before the Mercedes crew error, he and Bottas pulled back, who was second at the time. As a consolation prize, Russell only earned two points for ninth place and one for fastest lap. But they were at least the first points in his 37th Grand Prix.
Pérez’s first victory at the Sachir GP
Mexican Sergio Pérez sensationally won the Sachir Grand Prix. The Racing Point driver benefited from a pit crew error at Mercedes and celebrated his maiden Formula 1 victory.
The long wait is over
The 30-year-old Pérez finally won, as the second Mexican after Pedro Rodríguez in 1967, ahead of Frenchman Esteban Ocon in the Renault and his Canadian teammate at Racing Point, Lance Stroll. “I am speechless. I have been waiting for this moment for so many years. Ten years passed, incredible. It shows again that you should never give up. Strategy and luck were on my side today,” said Pérez, who has to leave his cabin to Sebastian Vettel after the end of the season.
Ocon was also happy after his first podium: “I cried on the return lap, there were so many emotions. It was a difficult year for me ”. On the other hand, Stroll was not entirely satisfied: “An incredible race for our team. But I’m also a little sad because I could have won too. It would have had the speed. But it’s a great result, we needed it for the World Cup. I’m happy for Sergio, he has waited so long for this victory. “
It was the 16th and penultimate race of the Formula 1 season. The final will take place in Abu Dhabi in a week. Hamilton is already established as a world champion, as is Mercedes among designers.
Great start for Russell, Verstappen and Leclerc out
The first lap on the “Outer Circuit” at Sachir was turbulent, if not as dramatic as the week before, when Romain Grosjean had a fire accident at Haas, causing the race to be abandoned. Russell, who started the race from second place, took the lead with a sensational start ahead of Polemann Bottas.
Behind there was a collision between Charles Leclerc and Pérez at turn four. In addition to Ferrari driver Leclerc, Red Bull driver Max Verstappen also suffered, as he slipped while attempting evasive maneuvers on the gravel bed and crashed into the barrier.
Crash in the first lap
A clash between Charles Leclerc and eventual winner Sergio Pérez ended the hopes of Leclerc and Max Verstappen in the first round.
For the Dutchman and the Monegasque, who started from third and fourth place, the race ended early. Perez, for his part, was lucky, he was able to continue after a pit stop and gradually made his way from 18th and last place.
Russell keeps Bottas in check
On the restart after the next safety car phase, Russell easily maintained the lead. Bottas had to give up second place to Carlos Sainz, but he again passed the Spanish McLaren driver a little later. After that, the Mercedes duo clearly separated from the rest of the field, but Bottas never got dangerously close to Russell, the gap between the young Briton and the veteran Finn fluctuated between two and three seconds.
The two Silver Arrows took longer to change their tires than most of the pursuers. Russell was the first Mercedes driver to pit on lap 47, setting the fastest lap after the stop and extending his lead over his teammate, who pitted two laps later, to eight seconds.
Tire damage stops the race to catch up
When everything was pointing to a double victory for the Silver Arrows, the dominant team made the serious mistake on the 63rd of 87 laps during a safety car phase by changing tires, which was only intended to be a safety stop.
Chaos in the Mercedes box
With a big mistake when changing tires, the Mercedes mechanics probably handed out a double win for silver.
After the first additional stop, Russell edged Bottas, Stroll and Ocon from fifth to second on the appropriate tires, but his pursuit was halted before he could initiate an attack on the leader Perez. A puncture forced another stop and with it the final relapse. More than advancement to ninth place was no longer possible for the race tabloid. “What else can I say? It’s a shame,” Russell said.
With Pérez, on the other hand, luck returned. A week ago he dropped out of third place in Bahrain just before the end. This time he got his first win, despite the fact that he fell to the back of the field after the collision on the starting lap.
