dutch pilot Max Verstappen (Red Bull) and Monegasque charles leclerc (Ferrari) will try to get back into contention for victory. Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Eighth round of the Formula 1 World Championship, in which they both participated carlos sainz like (Ferrari) Fernando Alonso (Alpine) comes who wants to shine.
The Baku Circuit is hosting the second consecutive street race after the first street race held in Monaco two weeks ago, in which the first step to the podium was taken for the entire season. Verstappen neither for Leclerc, but the current champion went into the penalty area to keep his distance from his main opponent.
The only thing that did not change in the Principality, where another chaotic Sunday was experienced due to the rain, was the available space. Red Bull He added his fourth consecutive and fifth overall victory thanks to Mexican Sergio Pérez, who received a nice award for his ‘favor’ to his teammate in Montmeló (Barcelona).
And now the Austrian team is coming to a track where it has generally performed well and won in two of its five visits (it hosted the European Grand Prix in 2016), but never with Verstappen. Australia Daniel Ricciardo He did it in 2017 and last year at ‘Checo’, in this case comforting a team that complained that the Dutchman had exploded on his way to victory.
Mercedes with the Germans Nico Rossberg (2016), English Lewis Hamilton This year stagnating and non-competitive (2018) and Finn Valtteri Bottas (2019) won three other races in Baku, a scenario where Ferrari can only boast second (2016) and third (2019). ) from German Sebastian Vettel, although there are more lead roles on Saturdays.
Verstappen He will try to defend his nine-point lead against Leclerc in a halftime gap where his best result is fourth in 2018, just as Leclerc should feel dominant against himself again. Red Bull, It has outstripped him since he took his second and final victory of the season in Australia.
Sainz wants to get closer to ‘top 3’ Alonso to keep adding
Leclerc, who can also be encouraged with his ‘pole’ from last year, PerezJust six points away, good this half with Force India (2016 and 2018) where he has two podiums, and as long as he has, he will try to repeat the victory to enter fully into the title fight. Christian Horner’s ‘permission’ and Verstappen’s interests are not clear.
And someone who wants to get closer to the ‘Top 3’ carlos sainz After being the ‘Scuderia’ best driver in the last two Grand Prix, he is heading to Baku with renewed vigor with a worthy second in Monte Carlo.
The Madrid man has taken two podiums (third in Miami) in the last three races, but is only one behind Briton George Russell (Mercedes) but is fifth overall with 83 points, while ‘Checo’ is away (27). Sainz will look to return to the fight in Baku, where he added fifth place with Renault as his best result of 2018.
Asturian pilot for himself Fernando Alonso He also hopes to pass on the progress Alpine has made to this Grand Prix, where his car will feature new aerodynamic improvements to increase its competitiveness.
The two-time world champion finished seventh in his second straight race in points, the Principality, and now hopes to bounce back, on a track he doesn’t like and where he was sixth after a perfect Sunday last year. fight for the middle zone. Despite its urban character, the streets of the Azeri capital where the race is held has little to do with what’s in Montecarlo, Where overtaking is an almost impossible task, this quote is the opposite. Also, for single-seater vehicles where aerodynamics is vital, the possibility of disturbing winds must always be considered.
WHERE TO WATCH AZERBAIJAN FORMULA 1 GP
The race can be watched live on DAZN and SPORT. If you have Movistar+, you can also watch Formula 1 on DAZN F1 channel (Translate 58).