Max Verstappen ⚔️ George Russell | Baku Sprint Race 2023 #f1 #formula1 #racing #maxverstappen #fyp

The 2023 Azerbaijan Grand Prix was the very first Sprint race run under F1’s new format — a separate Sprint Shootout qualifying session held Friday, distinct from the Grand Prix qualifying the day before.

Charles Leclerc had already taken pole for Sunday’s race on Friday. He backed it up by topping the Sprint Shootout too, despite crashing on his own final flying lap. He led off the line and controlled the early laps, until Perez used DRS to sweep past on lap 8 and pulled away to win outright — his and Red Bull’s first Sprint victory of the season. Leclerc held on for second, ahead of Verstappen, whose car picked up floor and sidepod damage after a side-by-side clash with Russell through the opening corners.

It set the tone for the whole weekend. Perez won the Sprint, then beat Verstappen to the Grand Prix win the next day too — a double victory in Baku that cut his teammate’s championship lead to just six points, and reignited a Red Bull intra-team title fight that would define the rest of the season.

[ Sergio Perez, Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen, George Russell, Red Bull Racing, Ferrari, Mercedes, Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2023, Baku City Circuit, Sprint Shootout, F1 history ]

source