2022 Azerbaijan Grand Prix: Verstappen Wins as Both Ferraris Retire
Table of Contents
- Race Weekend Overview
- About the Baku City Circuit
- Qualifying Results
- Race Day: How It Unfolded
- Full Race Results
- 2022 Driver Standings After Baku
- 2022 Constructor Standings After Baku
- What This Result Meant for the Championship
- FAQ
- Related Articles
1. Race Weekend Overview
The 2022 Azerbaijan Grand Prix took place at the Baku City Circuit from June 10 to 12. It was round eight of the 2022 FIA Formula One World Championship, a season made up of twenty-two races.
Charles Leclerc took a dominant pole position for Ferrari on Saturday. But Sunday told a very different story. Both Ferrari cars retired with mechanical failures, and Max Verstappen took full advantage to lead a Red Bull one-two finish.
2. About the Baku City Circuit
Baku first hosted a Formula 1 race in 2016 under the name European Grand Prix. The event became the Azerbaijan Grand Prix from 2017 onward. That first Azerbaijan race produced one of the biggest surprises of the season, with Daniel Ricciardo winning from Valtteri Bottas and Lance Stroll, while Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel had a tense battle behind the Safety Car.
The Baku City Circuit is a street track measuring 6.003 kilometers. It combines a long start-finish straight, tight medieval-city streets near the old town, and one of the narrowest corners on the calendar next to the castle wall. This mix makes it a track where high speed and high risk sit side by side.
If you are new to motorsport terms like qualifying, race strategy, or tire compounds, our MotoGP basics guide explains the fundamentals that apply across most racing series, including Formula 1.
3. Qualifying Results
Charles Leclerc claimed pole position by a comfortable margin, with a best lap of 1:41.359. Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen locked out the second row for Red Bull, while Carlos Sainz completed a strong top four for Ferrari.
| POS | NO | DRIVER | TEAM | Q3 TIME |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:41.359 |
| 2 | 11 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull Racing RBPT | 1:41.641 |
| 3 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Racing RBPT | 1:41.706 |
| 4 | 55 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | 1:41.814 |
| 5 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1:42.712 |
| 6 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | AlphaTauri RBPT | 1:42.845 |
| 7 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1:42.924 |
| 8 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri RBPT | 1:43.056 |
| 9 | 5 | Sebastian Vettel | Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes | 1:43.091 |
| 10 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Alpine Renault | 1:43.173 |
4. Race Day: How It Unfolded
Leclerc lost his lead almost immediately. A lock-up into Turn 1 let Perez slip through for the race lead at the start, while Verstappen also moved ahead of his pole-sitting rival.
On lap 9, Carlos Sainz pulled off at Turn 4 with a hydraulic failure. His car came to a stop in the run-off area, triggering a Virtual Safety Car. Ferrari used the moment to pit Leclerc for hard tires. The Red Bulls of Perez and Verstappen chose to stay out, and the gamble briefly worked against Leclerc, who slipped behind both Red Bulls.
Verstappen wasted no time going after his own teammate. On lap 15, he lined up Perez and passed him into Turn 1 for the lead, even though Perez had been told over team radio not to fight back. Verstappen immediately began pulling away.
Pit strategy shuffled the order again. Perez stopped on lap 17 and lost time with a slow 5.4-second tire change, which allowed Leclerc back ahead of him into second place. Verstappen pitted two laps later and used the free air on fresh tires to leapfrog back past his teammate, restoring his lead.
Then, on lap 20, disaster struck Ferrari a second time. Smoke poured from the back of Leclerc's car while he ran in the podium places, and he was forced to retire with an engine failure. It was a brutal blow for a driver who had already lost a likely win in Spain and a shot at victory in Monaco earlier in the season. With both Ferraris out, Red Bull faced no more pressure from its main championship rival for the rest of the afternoon.
Behind the front-runners, reliability problems kept appearing. Zhou Guanyu and Kevin Magnussen, who shared the same power unit supplier as Ferrari, also retired later in the race with mechanical issues. Yuki Tsunoda's AlphaTauri suffered a strange DRS problem that partially split his rear wing, and his team resorted to taping it back together mid-race.
Reliability dramas like this are not unique to F1. Our recap of the 2013 MotoGP Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang covers a similar late-season swing caused by mechanical trouble.
In the midfield, Sebastian Vettel fought his way past Esteban Ocon after an early failed attempt, eventually bringing his Aston Martin home in sixth. George Russell was steady all weekend and claimed the final podium spot for Mercedes, continuing a strong run of consistent results through the opening half of the season.
At the front, Verstappen controlled the race to the finish line, taking his fourth win of the season. Perez crossed second to complete a Red Bull one-two, and Russell rounded out the podium for Mercedes.
5. Full Race Results
| POS | NO | DRIVER | TEAM | TIME/RETIRED | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Racing RBPT | 1:34:05.941 | 25 |
| 2 | 11 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull Racing RBPT | +20.823s | 19 |
| 3 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | +45.995s | 15 |
| 4 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | +71.679s | 12 |
| 5 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | AlphaTauri RBPT | +77.299s | 10 |
| 6 | 5 | Sebastian Vettel | Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes | +84.099s | 8 |
| 7 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Alpine Renault | +88.596s | 6 |
| 8 | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | McLaren Mercedes | +92.207s | 4 |
| 9 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren Mercedes | +92.556s | 2 |
| 10 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine Renault | +108.184s | 1 |
| 11 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Alfa Romeo Ferrari | +1 lap | 0 |
| 12 | 23 | Alexander Albon | Williams Mercedes | +1 lap | 0 |
| 13 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri RBPT | +1 lap | 0 |
| 14 | 47 | Mick Schumacher | Haas Ferrari | +1 lap | 0 |
| 15 | 6 | Nicholas Latifi | Williams Mercedes | +1 lap | 0 |
| 16 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas Ferrari | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 24 | Zhou Guanyu | Alfa Romeo Ferrari | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 55 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | DNF | 0 |
6. 2022 Driver Standings After Baku
| POS | DRIVER | NAT | TEAM | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Max Verstappen | NED | Red Bull Racing RBPT | 150 |
| 2 | Sergio Perez | MEX | Red Bull Racing RBPT | 129 |
| 3 | Charles Leclerc | MON | Ferrari | 116 |
| 4 | George Russell | GBR | Mercedes | 99 |
| 5 | Carlos Sainz | ESP | Ferrari | 83 |
| 6 | Lewis Hamilton | GBR | Mercedes | 62 |
| 7 | Lando Norris | GBR | McLaren Mercedes | 50 |
| 8 | Valtteri Bottas | FIN | Alfa Romeo Ferrari | 40 |
| 9 | Esteban Ocon | FRA | Alpine Renault | 31 |
| 10 | Pierre Gasly | FRA | AlphaTauri RBPT | 16 |
| 11 | Fernando Alonso | ESP | Alpine Renault | 16 |
| 12 | Kevin Magnussen | DEN | Haas Ferrari | 15 |
| 13 | Daniel Ricciardo | AUS | McLaren Mercedes | 15 |
| 14 | Sebastian Vettel | GER | Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes | 13 |
| 15 | Yuki Tsunoda | JPN | AlphaTauri RBPT | 11 |
| 16 | Alexander Albon | THA | Williams Mercedes | 3 |
| 17 | Lance Stroll | CAN | Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes | 2 |
| 18 | Zhou Guanyu | CHN | Alfa Romeo Ferrari | 1 |
| 19 | Mick Schumacher | GER | Haas Ferrari | 0 |
| 20 | Nico Hulkenberg | GER | Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes | 0 |
| 21 | Nicholas Latifi | CAN | Williams Mercedes | 0 |
7. 2022 Constructor Standings After Baku
| POS | TEAM | PTS |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Red Bull Racing RBPT | 279 |
| 2 | Ferrari | 199 |
| 3 | McLaren Mercedes | 161 |
| 4 | Alpine Renault | 65 |
| 5 | Alfa Romeo Ferrari | 47 |
| 6 | AlphaTauri RBPT | 41 |
| 7 | Haas Ferrari | 27 |
| 8 | Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes | 15 |
| 9 | Mercedes | 15 |
8. What This Result Meant for the Championship
The double Ferrari retirement was the biggest story to come out of Baku. It stretched Verstappen's championship lead to 21 points over his own teammate Perez, and to 34 points over Leclerc. Red Bull now led Ferrari by 80 points in the constructors' standings.
For Ferrari, Baku added to a painful run of results. Leclerc had already lost a likely win in Spain to an engine issue and missed out on victory in Monaco due to a strategy mistake. Retiring from pole in Azerbaijan made it three races in a row where a strong result slipped away.
For Red Bull, the one-two finish confirmed the team's reliability and pace advantage at this stage of the season, setting the tone for the months that followed.
Championship momentum swings like this one often decide titles months later. For a look at how a season-long lead was closed out, read our recap of the 2013 Valencia Grand Prix, the race where Marc Marquez won the MotoGP title.
9. FAQ
Who won the 2022 Azerbaijan Grand Prix?
Max Verstappen won the race for Red Bull Racing, his fourth victory of the 2022 season.
Why did both Ferraris retire from the 2022 Azerbaijan Grand Prix?
Carlos Sainz retired on lap 9 with a hydraulic failure. Charles Leclerc retired on lap 20 after an engine failure sent smoke pouring from his car while he ran in the podium positions.
Who took pole position in Baku in 2022?
Charles Leclerc took pole position with a best lap of 1:41.359, but he did not finish the race.
Where is the Baku City Circuit?
The Baku City Circuit is a 6.003-kilometer street track in Baku, Azerbaijan. It has hosted a Formula 1 race every year since 2016.
How did the retirements affect the championship standings?
The result extended Max Verstappen's championship lead to 21 points over Sergio Perez and 34 points over Charles Leclerc, while Red Bull moved 80 points clear of Ferrari in the constructors' standings.
Did any other cars retire in the race?
Yes. Alongside both Ferraris, Zhou Guanyu and Kevin Magnussen also retired later in the race with mechanical issues.