Sebastian Vettel will look to continue to build momentum ahead of the Russian Grand Prix this Sunday, after winning his first GP in over a year in Singapore last time out.
Ferrari team mate Charles Leclerc has been in great form recently and will want to get on the podium yet again in this campaign in their pursuit of Mercedes. Lewis Hamilton has done very well in Russia over the past few years. Could Russia be the place where Mercedes thrive once again with the likes of Hamilton and Bottas?
Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the race in Sochi.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION:
What? Russian Grand Prix
Where? Sochi Autodrom, Sochi
When? Sunday 29th September (12:10)
PREVIOUS RUSSIAN GP WINNERS:
2018 – Lewis Hamilton
2017 – Valtteri Bottas
2016 – Nico Rosberg
2015 – Lewis Hamilton
2014 – Lewis Hamilton
LAST GP REVIEW: SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX
Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel were in an intense battle in the early stages, with the Brit having to defend his second position. George Russell, Nico Hulkenberg and Carlos Sainz all had to make early pit stops, with the latter two colliding in to each other. Russell had to make his stop after damaging his front wing shortly after the start of the race. Daniel Ricciardo did very well in the opening part of the Grand Prix has managed to climb to 10th place by the 20th lap.
Max Verstappen and Sebastian Vettel made successful pit stops and rejoined the race with minimal damage to their positions. Charles Leclerc’s pit stop in the 21st lap turns out to the costly for the Ferrari driver, who wasted his advantage of starting in pole position. He fell to 8th place after this stop. Five laps later, Lewis Hamilton made a stop which put Antonio Giovinazzi in top position temporarily. This was remarkable for the Alfa Romeo team. Meanwhile, Vettel was on the ride and climbed in to second place after overtaking Pierre Gasly around the 30th lap. He then reached first place a couple of laps later.
Ricciardo and Giovinazzi had a minor collision which forced both drivers to take pit stops. This was a blow for Renault, after the Australian did well for the first sedition of the race. In the following lap, George Russell crashed out after an incident with Grosjean. A safety car prompted Grosjean to make a pit stop. Carlos Sainz hugely benefitted from the safety car, after spending the first half of the race over a minute behind some of the other drivers.
Sergio Perez was the next driver to retire and the safety car was deployed once again in the 43rd lap. Vettel, Leclerc and Verstappen were in 1st, 2nd and 3rd place respectively going in to the final ten laps. Kimi Raikkonen was the next driver to trite after being forced off the track by Torro Rosso’s Kyvat. Whilst there was minimal action at the front, the middle pack provided a lot of entertainment. Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc managed to hold on to the two two places to cap off a very successful day for Ferrari. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen took the final podium position.
Final Classification:
1st – Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari)
2nd – Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
3rd – Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
4th – Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
5th – Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes)
6th – Alexander Albon (Red Bull)
7th – Lando Norris (McLaren)
8th – Pierre Gasly (Scuderia Toro Rosso)
9th – Nico Hulkenberg (Renault)
10th – Antonio Giovinazzi (Alfa Romeo)
11th – Romain Grosjean (Haas)
12th – Carlos Sainz (McLaren)
13th – Lance Stroll (Racing Point)
14th – Daniel Ricciardo (Renault)
15th – Daniil Kvyat (Scuderia Toro Rosso)
16th – Robert Kubica (Williams)
17th – Kevin Magnussen (Haas)
DNF – Kimi Raikkonen (Alfa Romeo)
DNF – Sergio Perez (Racing Point)
DNF – George Russell (Williams)
REMAINING GRAND PRIX 2019 EVENTS:
13th October – Japanese GP, Suzuka
27th October – Mexican GP, Mexico City
3rd November – US Grand Prix, Texas
17th November – Brazilian GP, Sao Paulo
1st December – Abu Dhabi GP
