Formula One visits to Baku rarely disappoint, and the 2022 race was no different, even though Sunday’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix included a major blow for a title contender, as the his main rival got another victory.
Edd Straw pronounces his verdict on the performances of the 20 F1 drivers over the weekend.
After each grand prize, The Race will score each driver’s weekend with a score of 10.
An average grade is 5 out of 10, so this score is indicative of decent driving given the high level of F1 drivers.
For a more detailed explanation, read our system diagram.
Started: 3rd Finished: 1st
Qualification
What he called “small mistakes” from the second sector cost Verstappen in Q3, although Pérez always seemed to have the advantage over him in the pace of a single lap in the middle sector.
career
He took third place at the start of Leclerc’s chase, but was given the position when Ferrari entered under the first virtual security car. He easily grabbed and overtook Pérez, who was ordered not to fight, and was 13 seconds behind Leclerc with a nine-lap tire advantage when he was led by Leclerc’s withdrawal.
Verdict: not yet there with the rhythm of a single lap, but strong in the race, although the withdrawal of Leclerc made things much easier.
Started: 2nd Finished: 2nd
Qualification
It seemed to have an advantage over Verstappen, especially in the middle sector. A fuel problem delayed the start of his last race, but despite not having a trailer, Pérez made a magnificent lap to get second on the grid.
career
He took the lead at first, but struggled unusually with tire management. Graining were given a chance to change things around. Despite the time lost at the pit stops, his pace of racing was not as good as Verstappen, which the team put to the test of the tires.
Verdict: Stronger in the classification than in the adjustment of the race, getting the supporting role on Sunday.
Started: 7th Finished: 4th
Qualification
He ran what team leader Toto Wolff called “a different floor solution” to Russell in the standings as Mercedes continued to fix his problems and finished a couple of tenths slower. The pair were separated by a couple of hundredths of a turn from turn 16, but the gap widened in the race to the line with the journey of Hamiton’s car even wilder than Russell’s.
career
He stayed ahead of Tsunoda at the start, but struggled to challenge Gasly during the first and second periods, which was not helped by the time lost in the first stops that allowed Vettel to advance temporarily.
A second stop for a new hard set under the second VSC gave him a grip advantage and allowed him to catch and pass Gasly.
Verdict: A good weekend of work struggling with a more experimental flat.
Started: 5th Finished: 3rd
Qualification
He was the one who pulled the most out of the car in the standings to finish fifth despite being “in pieces” by the savage who hit rock bottom.
career
He stayed fifth at the start and ran the race well, initially with a single stop after fighting hard under the VSC. This became a two-stop stop to take on new difficulties under the second VSC thanks to a cheap pit stop that didn’t cost him the track position. The disappearance of the Ferraris took third place.
Verdict: He got the best possible result in the classification and the race.
Start: 1st Finish: DNF
Qualification
He pulled another qualifying special from the stock market after being half a tenth of Sainz on his first lap. It wasn’t a perfect lap and a trailer was missing on the line, with a few moments to correct, but it was enough to give him the pole for almost three tenths.
career
He did not have the best start thanks to a turn of the wheels and lost the lead to Pérez in turn 1, closing in on the first corner but keeping him on the island. He was detained at Verstappen early on and made a stop under the first VSC. He led with 13 seconds of Verstappen with tires nine laps bigger than the Red Bull rider when his power unit gave way.
Verdict: He deserved a chance to see if he could close out the victory, even though it was hard to get started.
Started: 4th Finished: DNF
Qualification
The fastest in the first runs of Q3, he took an “aggressive” approach to his last race. He opted to run outdoors without a trailer to allow him to optimize tire preparation, but he was almost two-tenths slower than in his first race after a messy lap.
career
He finished fourth at the start and had fallen five seconds behind third-placed Verstappen when he was forced to retire due to a hydraulic problem.
Verdict: The pace when it mattered to the classification and at the start of the race was so good.
Started: 12th Finished: 8th
Qualification
On Friday I struggled while trying some things worked on in the simulator before the race, but on Saturday it seemed much more comfortable. Still he finished just over a tenth and a half behind Norris and was a little disappointed not to take a bigger step forward in Q2.
career
He finished 12th in the first stage at the start of a long hard race, retaining his place in the queue after being ordered to stay behind teammate Norris before ‘stop under the VSC. This allowed him to pit and resurface ahead of Norris, with the other three places won thanks to Ferrari’s weaknesses and Tsunoda’s DRS-induced second stop.
Verdict: I needed a decent weekend and I produced one.
Started: 11th Finished: 9th
Qualification
He had the pace to get to Q3, but did not run well in Q2, with a shutdown and struggle to nail the tire preparation, which did not produce the pace that the car was capable of. But it was still enough to get ahead of his teammate.
career
He was 11th at the start after starting with media, with the order of his teammate Ricciardo to stay behind him. Eventually, he had to stop to perform 20 laps, which dropped him into traffic.
He eventually eliminated Albon and Stroll, but VSC’s time ensured that Ricciardo could stop and get ahead again. Norris was ninth in the final stage, after winning two places thanks to other people’s problems, and was ordered to stay behind Ricciardo.
Verdict: A pretty good weekend, but not the best of what has been a strong season.
Started: 13th Finished: 10th
Qualification
The yellow flag activated by Norris in Q2 denied Ocon the opportunity to mark a time with fresh rubber, leaving him well placed in the top 10. But at the time he was fine and considered himself a tenth and a half faster than his teammate Alonso when he had to have an abortion.
career
He was 13th in the first stage and, indeed, was still there at the end of the race, although he had climbed to 10th thanks to the disappearance of the Ferraris and the second forced stop of Tsunoda. He started strong and ran long, grabbing middle under the second VSC, and was comfortably away from Bottas in the battle for the end point.
Verdict: The rating did not reflect his speed, but he drove a capable and error-free race.
Started: 10th Finished: 7th
Qualification
He arrived in Q3, but did not think there would be much more pace in the car, although a tenth would have been enough to overtake Vettel. But it was a well-executed session, although Albon suggested that Alonso was playing at the end of Q1.
career
He was 10th at the start and won a place when Sainz retired, but despite starting with means he didn’t stop under the VSC and ran until lap 18 before making his stop. He overtook Bottas, Magnussen and, with assistance, Ocon at the beginning of that stage to make sure he did not get stuck, which ensured that he returned to what was actually his original position, which became the seventh. thanks to the withdrawals of the Ferraris and Tsunoda. extra stop.
Verdict: Make the most of the Alpí’s straight-line speed in the race after a solid classification.
Started: 6th Finished: 5th
Qualification
He ran the qualifying hard, made it to Q3 and then put the car sixth. But even then he was a little disappointed, as Russell was potentially victorious, but for a while lost in the first half of the lap.
career
He was sixth at the start and then stopped under the first VSC, keeping Hamilton at bay for the first half of the race. He ran to the end in that hard set and couldn’t stop under the second VSC, as he only had soft sets left, which left him vulnerable to Hamilton’s load to pass him.
Verdict: A strong weekend job with only the imperfections of Q3 really counting against him.
Started: 8th Finished: 13th
Qualification
He survived a lockout and ran down the escape lane on lap 2 in his last race Q2 to scratch at Q3: 0.022 s faster than Norris after using softs in his first race . It was a couple of tenths of a second behind Gasly, with much of the deficit in the middle sector in Q3.
career
He pitted from eighth position under the first VSC and seemed comfortable with the tough ones on his way to what would have been sixth place when a DRS problem occurred. With only half of the flap open, he was given the “meatball” flag, meaning he had to pit it to repair it, leaving it in the 13th.
Verdict: We had a good weekend, but it was a little below Gasly’s level.
Started: 9th Finished: 6th
Qualification
He passed Q1 and Q2 comfortably, with the latter especially impressive as he did not benefit from a large trailer on his way to seventh place in Q2. He opted to use his only soft set in the first half of Q3 and made a good turn, albeit without the benefit of a good trailer.
career
He was eighth after overtaking Tsunoda in the first half of the first lap and then opted to stop under the VSC on the ninth lap. But a mistake in passing Ocon, which was due in part to losing the notion of exactly where he was approaching the braking zone, caused a trip down the getaway road and places lost by Hamilton and Tsunoda. He finished sixth, which was where he probably would have done anyway, but he lost seven seconds by that mistake.
Verdict: The fact that his lap 13 has not finally changed his result does not mean that he does not harm what would otherwise be a very high rating.
Start: 19 Finish: 16
Qualification
He had a disastrous Q1, first entering the barriers at turn 7 …