The 2024 Formula 1 season went to Baku this weekend for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix — the 17th race of the year.
Sergio Perez has enjoyed recent success at the street circuit and was searching for a third victory from fourth place on the grid.
Meanwhile, his Red Bull teammate Max Verstappen started from sixth as he looks to maintain his healthy, but shrinking, championship lead.
Lando Norris has been chipping away at Verstappen's advantage at the past few Grands Prix but suffered a shock Q1 elimination in Saturday's qualifying session.
Ferrari duo Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz sandwiched Oscar Piastri in the top three grid spots, although the unpredictability and speed of the Baku track meant an outcome was far from determined.
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Who won the F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix?
Oscar Piastri took out a high-octane race in Baku on Sunday. Ironically, the win comes after McLaren stated they would prioritise championship-hopeful Norris for the remainder of the season.
The Australian started the race from P2 and stuck closely behind pole-sitter Leclerc in the initial stages. Some favourable pit-stops and track positioning then saw him overtake the Monegasque driver on lap 20, snatching the overall lead.
From there on, Piastri executed a masterful and calm drive, holding off a determined Leclerc, who had some DRS assistance.
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Yuki Tsunoda and Lance Stroll — who were involved in an early skirmish — looked set to be the only retirements of the afternoon before Perez and Sainz crashed out in a dramatic incident. With two laps remaining, the pair were fighting for the last spot on the podium and slammed into the barriers together after colliding down a straight.
That saw George Russell move up to P3 as the race finished under a virtual safety car.
Norris (P4) charged up the grid to crucially move ahead of championship rival Verstappen (P5) in the final few laps, while also picking up an extra point by recording the fastest lap. Alonso finished behind them in sixth.
The Williams duo of Alex Albon and Franco Colapinto crossed the line in an unlikely seventh and eighth position, respectively, with the latter bagging his first points in F1.
Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton and Haas' Kevin Magnussen replacement driver Oliver Bearman rounded out the top 10.
F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix: Driver of the day
After an impressive drive, Piastri was voted by the fans as the 'driver of the day'.
Notably, his performance, along with teammate Norris, has seen McLaren overtake Red Bull at the top of the constructors' standings.
F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix: Race results, standings
| Driver | |||
| 1. | Oscar Piastri (McLaren) | 11. | Nico Hulkenberg (Haas) |
| 2. | Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) | 12. | Pierre Gasly (Alpine) |
| 3. | George Russell (Mercedes) | 13. | Daniel Ricciardo (RB) |
| 4. | Lando Norris (McLaren) | 14. | Zhou Guanyu (Kick Sauber) |
| 5. | Max Verstappen (Red Bull) | 15. | Esteban Ocon (Alpine) |
| 6. | Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) | 16. | Valtteri Bottas (Kick Sauber) |
| 7. | Alexander Albon (Williams) | DNF | Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) |
| 8. | Franco Colapinto (Williams) | DNF | Sergio Perez (Red Bull) |
| 9. | Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) | DNF | Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) |
| 10. | Oliver Bearman (Haas) | DNF | Yuki Tsunoda (RB) |
F1 Drivers' World Championship 2024 updated standings, points
| Position | Driver | Team | Points |
| 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 313 |
| 2 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 254 |
| 3 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 235 |
| 4 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 222 |
| 5 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | 184 |
| 6 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 166 |
| 7 | George Russell | Mercedes | 143 |
| 8 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull | 143 |
| 9 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 58 |
| 10 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 24 |
| 11 | Nico Hulkenberg | Haas | 22 |
| 12 | Yuki Tsunoda | RB | 22 |
| 13 | Alexander Albon | Williams | 12 |
| 14 | Daniel Ricciardo | RB | 12 |
| 15 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 8 |
| 16 | Oliver Bearman | Ferrari | 7 |
| 17 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | 6 |
| 18 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine | 5 |
| 19 | Franco Colapinto | Williams | 4 |
| 20 | Zhou Guanyu | Kick Sauber | 0 |
| 21 | Logan Sargeant | Williams | 0 |
| 22 | Valtteri Bottas | Kick Sauber | 0 |
F1 Constructors' Championship 2024 updated standings, points
| Position | Team | Points |
| 1 | McLaren | 476 |
| 2 | Red Bull | 456 |
| 3 | Ferrari | 425 |
| 4 | Mercedes | 309 |
| 5 | Aston Martin | 82 |
| 6 | RB | 34 |
| 7 | Haas | 29 |
| 8 | Williams | 19 |
| 9 | Alpine | 13 |
| 10 | Kick Sauber | 0 |
F1 live stream, TV channel: How to watch races in 2024
| Country | TV channel | Live stream |
| USA | — | FUBO, F1TV |
| Canada | TSN (English); RDS (French) | TSN Direct |
| UK | Sky Sports F1 | SkyGo, NOW TV |
| Australia | Fox Sports | Foxtel Go, Kayo Sports |
| India | — | F1 TV Pro |