Race report
Azerbaijan GP: Top 10 quotes after race
Daniel Ricciardo emerged a shock winner in a remarkably chaotic Azerbaijan GP
Photo by: Andrew Hone / Motorsport Images
| Cla | # | Driver | Chassis | Time | Gap | km/h | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 |  Daniel Ricciardo |
Red Bull | 2:03'55.573 | 148.176 | 25 | |
| “I have never really had a boring win and today was certainly not that. After all the chaos and the red flag I felt that a podium was in reach but then once Lewis had to pit and Seb had the penalty I knew the win was possible. I kind of said yesterday that after my qualifying mistake and starting in tenth place, today was going to be a race of no mistakes, capitalising on moments and opportunities and I felt like we did everything we could this afternoon. The odds of a podium or win got pushed even further back when we had to make an unscheduled pit stop early in the race and I think I was back in seventeenth place. Then things fell in to place quite nicely and on every re-start I was able to make up positions and make it happen. The last re-start was the most important and I think it was Stroll, Hulkenberg, Massa and me, all nearly four wide but I managed to get third and I think that was, in a way, the winning move. Once I saw the gap I was going to do everything I could to brake as late as possible and get that position. It was a real shame for Max today but it is great to get this victory for everyone in the team. I felt like this weekend was better for us overall and hopefully both of us can be on the podium together soon. What a day, it’s crazy and it’s slowly sinking in.” | |||||||
| 2 | 77 |  Valtteri Bottas |
Mercedes | 2:03'59.477 | 3.904 | 148.098 | 18 |
| "Today was a crazy race, especially for me. I had a puncture on the first lap after the contact with Kimi on Lap 1. I was a lap down, then had to overtake the field under the Safety Car. The second Safety Car after that really helped me out and, step by step, I moved forward from there. My main goal today was to fight for the win but that went out of the window after the first lap. I was actually last at one point, but I got my head down, gave it absolutely everything and tried to get the absolute maximum out of every single corner. We didn't quite manage to win but P2 from where we were is a great feeling. Importantly for the team, we scored more points in the fight with Ferrari and I got some good points for myself as well. " | |||||||
| 3 | 18 |  Lance Stroll |
Williams | 2:03'59.582 | 4.009 | 148.096 | 15 |
| “I’m just lost for words right now. It was such a hectic race and so much happened, but the team kept me cool on the radio, the pace was good, we took it to the end and stayed out of trouble. I can’t quite believe what’s just happened. We just lost out to Valtteri at the end there in one of the closest finishes of all time going side-by-side across the finish line. Coming into this weekend I never thought I would be standing on the podium. It’s an amazing feeling and, for me, a dream come true. However, what happened today was a team effort and I can’t thank everyone enough for making this happen. I am just so sorry that I could not celebrate with Felipe, as that would have been the icing on the cake. I am sure without his problems he would have been up there with me. ” | |||||||
| 4 | 5 |  Sebastian Vettel |
Ferrari | 2:04'01.549 | 5.976 | 148.057 | 12 |
| “First of all, I think that today the car was very good. The pace was strong in the race. I think you could see that we were losing a bit here and there, but overall it was a good race. It was a very busy start, and Vallteri was very aggressive. As for what happened at the restart from the safety car, I don't know why I got the penalty and Lewis didn't. It's disappointing, because it could have been a better result. I don't have a problem with Lewis but I just think that what he did on the track was not ok. By now the decision is done but, in an episode like this one, I still think that if you give out a penalty, then it should be to both drivers.” | |||||||
| 5 | 44 |  Lewis Hamilton |
Mercedes | 2:04'01.761 | 6.188 | 148.053 | 10 |
| "It's difficult to swallow a result like this after a strong weekend. I drove my heart out today right to the line - I gave it everything. I know the team will be devastated about the issue with the headrest, but what we have to take away from this weekend is the great performance we have shown. We all feel that pain, but it's on me to gather my thoughts and try and lead the team through this adversity. We'll pull together and move forwards. I'm proud of my performance and I hope we can take the speed we've shown this weekend forward. I definitely didn't brake-test Sebastian. I controlled the pace under the Safety Car and, just like with the other restarts, I slowed down in the same place on the entry to T15. At that point, it is up to me to control the pace and then I felt a bump from behind. But that wasn't the issue for me - everybody saw clearly what happened after. All the young kids in other series look up to us, as champions, to set an example and that is not the behaviour you expect to see from a multiple champion. But we know that when times get tough, true colours show, and we have managed to apply some good pressure in the last weeks. Personally, I want to do my talking on the track and win this championship in the right way. More than ever after this weekend, I believe we can. " | |||||||
| 6 | 31 |  Esteban Ocon |
Force India | 2:04'25.871 | 30.298 | 147.575 | 8 |
| “It’s hard to sum up your feelings after such a busy race. I’m happy with our performance and also disappointed not to realise the potential we had today. It’s never nice to have an incident with your teammate and it was costly for both of us – we both lost a lot of time and positions. Fortunately I could recover, overtake a lot of cars and score some important points for the team. We will discuss things internally and see what happened, but when you are racing close to each other at a restart these things can happen sometimes. Sergio was very deep into turn one at the restart and I went on his inside. He squeezed me between turns one and two, and I was on the inside going into turn two. He was trying to resist on the outside of the corner and we touched. We need to review it together and understand more. For sure it should not happen again in the future.” | |||||||
| 7 | 20 |  Kevin Magnussen |
Haas | 2:04'37.326 | 41.753 | 147.348 | 6 |
| “It was a crazy race with all the Safety Car periods, the red flag – so many things happened. I stayed out of trouble and had a good balance in the car. The car’s been handling well all weekend – there’s just been some issues with brakes and just not being that competitive on this track and the layout not suiting us. To come away with a seventh-place finish is pretty good. We were in P3 at one point and I got a bit excited about that. I had some fun out there. It was a great afternoon.” | |||||||
| 8 | 55 |  Carlos Sainz Jr. |
Toro Rosso | 2:04'44.973 | 49.400 | 147.198 | 4 |
| “What a crazy race! The start to it was already difficult: when I got to Turn 1 I saw Daniil rejoining the track and I had to quickly avoid crashing into him, which would’ve been a disaster for the team! I span, but it was a sacrifice I had to do. From then onwards, I kept calm, was very patient, and we recovered from last to eighth without making any mistakes. I have to say it was difficult to keep focused with so many things happening: Safety Cars, the red flag… And I can say I’m satisfied with today’s result in the end!” | |||||||
| 9 | 14 | Fernando Alonso |
McLaren | 2:04'55.124 | 59.551 | 146.999 | 2 |
| “Starting 19th because of our penalties, on one of our least competitive circuits, yet still scoring our first championship points is unreal; a complete surprise. The race really came to us through the many retirements and a lot of action. I managed to stay away from the walls, just brushing them here and there. Nevertheless, I think we could have fought for a podium finish today – and perhaps even the victory. We were behind Daniel Ricciardo during the first Safety Car period; then Lewis had a problem with his headrest and was forced to pit; Sebastian had a penalty; Kimi (briefly) retired; the two Force Indias touched each other, so we automatically found ourselves in a decent position. We missed out on further opportunities because we weren’t quick enough in the race and couldn’t hold on to that position. Still, we got our first two points of the season today, so let’s just take that.” | |||||||
| 10 | 94 | Pascal Wehrlein |
Sauber | 2:05'24.666 | 1'29.093 | 146.421 | 1 |
| “Yes, another point finish. First of all it was a crazy race, but you know these are the races where we need to be there and today we extracted a maximum from the race again. More than P10 was not possible. And you know in the beginning I had an issue with the engine which took a while [to sort] and when we solved it I was last and quite fast. I was happy actually about the safety car and red flag, because that gave me a change to catch up again and than overtake Marcus in the end and pull away from him. So, happy with the race and looking forward to the next one.” | |||||||
Be part of Motorsport community
Join the conversationShare Or Save This Story
comments
Play along
More from
Fernando Alonso
Alonso: Stroll more sensitive to Aston F1 car handling issues I drive around
Chinese GP
Alonso: Stroll more sensitive to Aston F1 car handling issues I drive around
Aston Martin ‘not convinced’ Alonso would definitely want to stay in F1
Chinese GP
Aston Martin ‘not convinced’ Alonso would definitely want to stay in F1
Suzuka sensation redeemed Alonso, but his F1 future is complicated
Prime
Prime
Japanese GP
Suzuka sensation redeemed Alonso, but his F1 future is complicated
More from
Ferrari
Red Bull says it can't match "very lucrative" Audi F1 offer to Sainz
Chinese GP
Red Bull says it can't match "very lucrative" Audi F1 offer to Sainz
Sainz: All my best 2025 F1 seat options are "still open"
Chinese GP
Sainz: All my best 2025 F1 seat options are "still open"
What's been going wrong for Leclerc in F1's tiny margins qualifying game
Prime
Prime
What's been going wrong for Leclerc in F1's tiny margins qualifying game
How real-time scrutineering ensures fair and consistent competition in motorsport
How real-time scrutineering ensures fair and consistent competition in motorsport
The day Button scored his 'best F1 win'... until next time!
The day Button scored his 'best F1 win'... until next time!
New compound to thwart Porsche’s inspired Long Beach ‘no tires’ call
Long Beach
New compound to thwart Porsche’s inspired Long Beach ‘no tires’ call
Surging Chase Briscoe says a win "is right around the corner"
Surging Chase Briscoe says a win "is right around the corner"
Why F1 2026 worst-case fears could be key to new rules success
Prime
Prime
Chinese GP
Why F1 2026 worst-case fears could be key to new rules success
How the F1 driver market situation sits for each team with 2025 openings
Prime
Prime
How the F1 driver market situation sits for each team with 2025 openings
What's been going wrong for Leclerc in F1's tiny margins qualifying game
Prime
Prime
What's been going wrong for Leclerc in F1's tiny margins qualifying game
What the Chinese GP's highlights reveal about its first F1 race for five years
Prime
Prime
Chinese GP
What the Chinese GP's highlights reveal about its first F1 race for five years
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Subscribe now
Already subscribed? Sign in here
Top Comments