It was not the Azerbaijan Grand Prix thriller of recent years, but enough to deliver an exciting weekend for Formula 1 fans and bettors. Numerous unexpected incidents happened along the way, and once again, Red Bull played the recipient of its silver linings. Some drivers showcased their talents on the Baku City Circuit. It was a clean and crash-free race throughout.

Without further ado, Nitrobetting shares our top takeaways from the 2022 Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

Best Takeaways from 2022 Azerbaijan GP

Pure joy for some, crushing disappointment for others ????#AzerbaijanGP #F1 https://t.co/Zngf37RoK0

— Formula 1 (@F1) June 13, 2022

Red Bull with the one-two finish

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen looked shaky during the qualifiers, but eventually dominated the latter stages of the 2022 Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Despite an underwhelming qualifying performance, the Belgian-Dutch racer put in a striking performance to claim much-needed 25 points in the Drivers’ Championship. He crossed the finish line first from P3 and extended his world championship lead.

This is Verstappen’s first victory in Baku and was a good comeback from his unlucky incident in 2021, suffering a tire blowout late into the race.

Booking the one-two finish for Red Bull was Sergio Perez. The Mexican driver scored another podium finish in Baku after leading the opening lap. Although he was off the pace of his teammate in the end, Perez scored another point for running the fastest lap around the Azerbaijan circuit, as he took the record of the day from Verstappen by four-hundredths of a second. This is Sergio’s second-consecutive P2 finish in Baku.

As it stands, Sergio Perez sits 21 points behind Max Verstappen and 13 points ahead of Charles Leclerc in the 2022 Driver Standings. Moreover, Red Bull secures a significant 80-point lead over the Scuderia in the Constructor Standings.

Charles Leclerc continues to run out of luck

The Monegasque driver went through another traumatizing moment as a cloud of engine smoke escaped behind him in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. This is the second time in three races that the Scuderia faced mechanical issues. It was the latest in a series of disappointments that have seen an 80-point shift against him in five races.

Leclerc started the 2022 season on a high note. He scored two wins and a P2 in the first three races and was ahead of the defending champion Max Verstappen by 46 points. Five races later, Leclerc endured a sizable deficit as he now trails the Red Bull driver by 34 points. Adding insult to injury is the fact that Charles secured four pole positions in his last four races.

Another concerning matter for the team are the grid penalties that come with parts replacements. Leclerc reached his maximum allocation of three turbochargers this year, and we expect the sanctions to break in Canada this weekend. Although teams are permitted to make engine changes in line with reliability, these updates are likely to have a longer lead time, and it is not clear when Ferrari can find stability in this department.

In Spain, Leclerc was on pace for a P1 finish, followed by another solid performance in Monaco that the Red Bulls snatched from him. While another retirement is a blow to his title hopes, there’s time for him and Ferrari to catch up if they resolve the recurring engine issues.

Mr. Consistency strikes again

Mercedes driver George Russell jumped on the opportunity of two Ferrari Drivers falling out to finish third. He found consistent lines in qualifying that earned him a P5 start. The Englishman was also impressive in the early stages of the Grand Prix.

The Silver Arrows struggled with heavy porpoising more than any other car on the grid. It was a hit to the team around the Baku street circuit, and only managed a third-best position all weekend. Lewis Hamilton admitted after qualifying that rivals Red Bull and Ferrari are miles ahead of them and in another league.

But on Sunday, consistency from the team pays off as they find better results around the track. Even though they were never in contention for a podium finish with the two frontrunners racing hard in front, they were consistent and reliable enough to take advantage when race leader Charles Leclerc and teammate Carlos Sainz retired.

Russell grabs a third podium finish and continues his streak of finishing within the top five in the 2022 season. Teammate Lewis Hamilton sees a first top-four finish since Australia and gets the driver of the day vote after a well-matched P4.

An unbearable weekend for Ferrari

Azerbaijan 2022 is a weekend to forget for the Prancing Horse, regardless of the dominant qualifying stage on Saturday. Much of the pre-race talk revolved around Leclerc’s upsetting time in Monaco, when his team’s decision to double-stack proved costly.

The Italian manufacturer felt confident and was out to yield positive results, though they ended up on the end of a discouraging double DNF. Before Leclerc’s engine failure, Sainz had to retire early on in the race with a similar engine malfunction.

Additionally, three other Ferrari-powered cars encountered engine failures. Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu went out in Lap 26 and registered the race’s third retirement. Kevin Magnussen was trying to hold off for a points finish but was forced to retire as a fourth Ferrari-powered engine failed to finish the race.

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