The 2023 F1 season has returned after a month off with a bang – two races at the action packed Baku circuit and our summary covers the 2023 Azerbaijan Grand Prix Result for both the Sprint Race and the Main Event.
This 2023 Azerbaijan Grand Prix Result, Lap by Lap, Review & Summary gives you just enough to catch up with. With just a hint of cynicism, bias, opinion and colour. The perfect bite sized review for those who couldn’t be bothered, or don’t have enough time.
And to see how close our bold predictions were – look back on our 2023 Australian Grand Prix Preview.
READ MORE:
2023 Azerbaijan Grand Prix Preview
2023 Australian Grand Prix Review
2023 Australian Grand Prix Ratings
Our 2023 F1 Calendar & Results
2023 Azerbaijan Grand Prix Result Sprint Race Summary
Didn’t see the race live? Don’t have time to watch the whole race? Well here are the top laps where stuff happened. We write these live as we go, sort of like a minute by minute for the football, but marginally more interesting.
Setting the scene – Charles Leclerc doubled down on his mai nrace pole position by taking the top grid spot for the Sprint Race too. That’s after binning it on his final laps of the Sprint Shootout. Red Bulls are right there, so it will be a decent battle for a while. Mercedes look to be faster than the Aston Martins for now. Interest is whether having the separate sprint qualifying and no follow on effects for the main race will make much difference to the racing. If the first F2 race of the weekend is anything to go by – then yes.
GRID (Starting Order) – LEC PER VER RUS SAI HAM ALB ALO STR NOR
Lap 1 – Charles Leclerc gets away from 1st grid slot good enough to stay ahead of Sergio Perez. Max Verstappen and George Russell battle closely over third place and the Mercedes driver gets him into turn three, there looks to be contact but both seem OK. Further around the lap there’s a loose wheel and an Alpha Tauri with only three wheels. Poor Yuki Tsunoda who had a great weekend up to that point.
Lap 2 – Debris and a Wheel on the track is surely dangerous enough for the stewards to bring out the Safety Car, although there is no rain…..
VIRTUAL THEN PROPER SAFETY CAR DEPLOYED
ORDER – LEC PER RUS VER SAI HAM ALO ALB NOR STR
Meanwhile Max Verstappen is on the radio and the blub about being driven into by George Russell, which is a little pot kettle given his driving over the years, with Lewis Hamilton that is. Maybe it’s just a Mercedes thing, as Max seems to be able to race other cars no problem. Meanwhile, you just know it won’t be George Russell’s fault. Never is.
SAFETY CAR EXITS
ORDER – LEC PER VER RUS SAI ALO HAM ALB STR NOR
Lap 6 – After what seems like an eternity the race gets back underway. Leclerc leads Perez still, but Max Verstappen retakes third from George Russell. Fernando Alonso sneaks by Lewis Hamilton for sixth which sucks for Lewis as he looked likely to take fifth from Sainz not lose sixth to Alonso.
ORDER – LEC PER VER RUS SAI ALO HAM ALB STR NOR
Lap 8 – Sergio Perez overtakes Charles Leclerc for the lead into Turn 1. DRS helps, and now Max Verstappen is closing in too to ruin those good Ferrari vibes, or the hopes that Red Bull won’t win everything this season.
Lap 9 – Oscar Piastri overtakes his team mate for 10th. Great for the Australian, and we guess 10th and 11th is a decent improvement on their worst of 2023.
Lap 10 – Lando Norris pits to go to the back of the field. Not sure if that is related to being overtaken by Nico Hulkenberg before that stop.
Lap 12 – Lance Stroll overtakes Alex Albon for the final sprint point. Albon has impressed this weekend. There was also a radio message to Valtteri Bottas from his team, and we briefly realised he is actually in this race.
Lap 16 – If you’re wondering where the update is, there isn’t one. Not much has happened, so one could argue that the changes sort of haven’t worked. Maybe it’s the track, the drivers, the teams telling them to behave (which Christian Horner admitted to in a pre-race interview) or a combination. Driver don’t want to ruin their Sunday on Saturday.
If you want to see how a proper sprint race works, check out the F2 maniacs.
Final Lap – Sergio Perez does it easy in the end and wins the Sprint Race from Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen. The main point of interest is after the race as Vertappen and Russell exchange words and differing views over their clash. Without knowing officially, it won’t be George Russell’s fault.
| Pos | Driver | Time |
| 1 | Sergio PEREZ | 17 Laps |
| 2 | Charles LECLERC | 4.463 behind |
| 3 | Max VERSTAPPEN | 5.065 behind |
| 4 | George RUSSELL | 8.532 behind |
| 5 | Carlos SAINZ | 10.388 behind |
| 6 | Fernando ALONSO | 11.613 behind |
| 7 | Lewis HAMILTON | 16.503 behind |
| 8 | Lance STROLL | 18.417 behind |
| 9 | Alexander Albon | 21.757 behind |
| 10 | Oscar Piastri | 22.851 behind |
| 11 | Kevin Magnussen | 27.990 behind |
| 12 | Guanyu Zhou | 34.602 behind |
| 13 | Pierre GASLY | 36.918 behind |
| 14 | Nyck de Vries | 41.626 behind |
| 15 | Nico Hulkenberg | 48.587 behind |
| 16 | Valtteri BOTTAS | 49.917 behind |
| 17 | Lando NORRIS | 51.104 behind |
| 18 | Esteban OCON | 1:00.621 behind |
| DNF | Yuki TSUNODA | DNF Lap 6 |
| DNF | Logan Sargeant | DNS |
2023 Azerbaijan Grand Prix Result Main Race Summary
Didn’t see the race live? Don’t have time to watch the whole race? Well here are the top laps where stuff happened. We write these live as we go, sort of like a minute by minute for the football, but marginally more interesting.
Setting the scene – Sergio Perez got the win the Sprint Race yesterday as the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc settled for second after Perez breezed by after the Safety Car. Max Verstappen came third and had a post race blow up with George Russell after they clashed, so it is a shame they are far apart for the main race. Not a bad national anthem effort from Azerbaijan either. If you’re into that sort of thing.
GRID (Starting Order) – LEC VER PER SAI HAM ALO NOR TSU STR PIA
Lap 1 – Pole sitter Charles Leclerc makes a OK start and keeps first, the short run to the first corner and no DRS helps. The two Red Bulls also get off the line well and maintain their positions. Lance Stroll and George Russell were the drivers on the move moving up two places each. Not much action elsewhere is a start that was duller than expected or hoped for. Replays show a little bump and grind in the midfield. Although once the DRS kicks in this race might get interesting. Or Max Verstappen will clear Charles Leclerc like a rocket and disappear.
ORDER – LEC VER PER SAI HAM ALO STR NOR RUS TSU
Lap 4 – Max Verstappen breezes by Charles Leclerc going past the pits going into the first corner. Well that was fun while it lasted.
Lap 5 – Charles Leclerc holds off the inevitable for another lap as Sergio Perez stalks the Ferrari using DRS. A little further back Carlos Sainz seems to be holding up the upper midfield Mercedes and Aston Martin cars.
Lap 6 – The inevitable was delayed for just one lap and Sergio Perez takes Charles Leclerc’s second place. With the competitive part of the race over for 1st and 2nd we will have to settle for a decent six car battle for third.
ORDER – VER PER LEC SAI HAM ALO STR NOR RUS TSU
Lap 7 – After the Aston Martins agree not to attack each other via radio, there are signs that tyres are already starting to go off. Which could provide some welcome entertainment. In fact, the pit stops start on Lap 7, with some midfield maestros.
Lap 10 – Lewis Hamilton is the first of anyone notable to pit for tyres, which releases the Aston Martins to have a little fun. Meanwhile at the front Perez and Verstappen are very close together – within a tenth and DRS ready.
Yellow Flag in Sector 1 & 2 with an Alpha Tauri stranded near but not into a wall. Max Verstappen pits and Perez does not. Safety Car is called after Max has come in. Will this suit Verstappen or Perez. Could also suit Leclerc, Sainz, Alonso and Stroll.
SAFETY CAR DEPLOYED
Lap 11 – Perez, Leclerc, Sainz, Alonso, Stroll and Russell pit. Verstappen falls to third behind Perez and Leclerc who were able to pit quickly. The biggest losers aside from Verstappen were Hamilton and Norris who pits before the Yellow Flag. By the way the Alpha Tauri which binned it was Nyck de Vries.
One wonders if the Sergio Perez release in front of Leclerc will get looked at by Stewards. Same for Lance Stroll’s stroll into the pitlane to avoid stacking.
ORDER – PER LEC VER SAI ALO RUS STR OCO* HUL* HAM
(*) No Pit Stop
Lap 14 – RACE RESUMES
Safety Car leaves and Perez keeps his first place. A few corners later Verstappen steals Leclerc’s second place. A few corners later Fernando Alonso surprises his countryman Sainz with the sneakiest of overtakes in an unlikely place for fourth. Lewis Hamilton has gained two places for those in the market for Ham News, he is now 8th. Then 7th as he passes his team mate at the beginning of lap 15.
ORDER – PER VER LEC ALO SAI STR HAM RUS OCO HAM
Lap 17 – Lance Stroll clips the wall but continues for now. And the Stewards are looking into that Sergio Perez pit lane release. Almost clipping a wall was Kevin Magnussen’s Haas who does well not to bin it into turn one.
Lap 19 – A quick check on the race’s most anonymous drivers. Oscar Piastri is 13th, and the Alfa Romeos are 17th and 19th.
Lap 20 – Lance Stroll makes a small mistake and eventually loses his sixth place to Lewis Hamilton. Further ahead, Perez’s lead over Verstappen is staying at just over a second. Charles Leclerc is seven second behind that, meaning the next best car in the race is a second a lap slower. There’s your 2023 outlook for competition.
Lap 23 – The TV Coverage is starting to discuss tyre strategies and who can make it to the finish or not. Like us, they are probably just waiting for the next driver to bin it into the wall for a Safety Car. We say it will be either Stroll or Sargeant.
Lap 26 – Yep, we sure are into the dull stage of the race with a few laps of Esteban Ocon holding up a train of cars from 9th to 15th. Nico Hulkenberg (10th and the main challenger) brushes the wall, but continues.
Lap 29 – Sergio Perez is all of a sudden an extra second in front of Max Verstappen at the front. Some radio comms highlights Verstappen is struggling with something on his car that we can’t nor won’t explain due to lack of knowledge. Sergio Perez sets fastest lap on lap 30 just to rub his nose in it. Verstappen takes it back a lap later.
ORDER – PER VER LEC ALO SAI HAM STR RUS OCO HUL
Lap 31 – Alonso is catching Leclerc for third place and is almost within the DRS critical second.
Lap 33 – Pierre Gasly overtakes Valtteri Bottas for 18th. That’s second last v last. Bottas pits for a third time not long after. Perhaps he’s as bored as we are.
Lap 38 – Guanyu Zhou retires from the race. Can’t tell you what position it was but likely between who cares and doesn’t matter.
Lap 41 – Sergio Perez is over three seconds in front of his team mate, so that battle looks over, unless Perez pulls a piece on DNF magic out of his ar$e. Further back Alonso and Hamilton are both on the charge against Ferraris in front. Lewis Hamilton has been close to Carlos Sainz for some time now. One wonders if all those years being out in front in a Mercedes means that Hamilton is actually no good at overtaking?
Lap 46 – Lando Norris finally overtakes Nico Hulkenberg for 10th place after a good 30 laps or so behind him. Hulkenberg and Ocon (9th) have yet to stop and must before the race ends.
Lap 47 – Towards the front, all that’s left is for someone to do a glory run for fastest lap. George Russell’s race is the most irrelevant right now, so would be perfect candidate.
Lap 49 – Max Verstappen sets fastest lap, which should annoy his teammate a little.
Lap 50 – George Russell pits for soft tyres and a one lap blast for fastest lap.
Shambles in the pit lane as Esteban Ocon pits for his mandatory pit stop only to come across a crowd of photographers blocking the entry. The happy snappers are smart enough to get out of the way. Questions about safety will be asked, especially given the governing body are high on safety and low on drivers earrings.
Last lap – Sergio Perez wins the 2023 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, becoming the first driver to win this race a second time. His teammate isn’t too far back, but rarely pressured him after losing the lead thanks to the Safety Car. The Ferraris held on in front of fastest cars for a solid third and fifth finish. Perez seems as happy as an accountant who saves someone $15 on their tax return. Although sparks up on the podium.
FINAL ORDER – PER VER LEC ALO SAIN HAM STR RUS NOR NOR
| Pos | Drivers | Grid | Time |
| 1 | Sergio PEREZ | 3 | 51 Laps |
| 2 | Max VERSTAPPEN | 2 | + 2.137 |
| 3 | Charles LECLERC | 1 | + 21.217 |
| 4 | Fernando ALONSO | 6 | + 22.024 |
| 5 | Carlos SAINZ | 4 | + 45.491 |
| 6 | Lewis HAMILTON | 5 | + 46.145 |
| 7 | Lance STROLL | 9 | + 51.617 |
| 8 | George RUSSELL | 11 | + 1m 14s |
| 9 | Lando NORRIS | 7 | + 1m 20s |
| 10 | Yuki TSUNODA | 8 | + 1m 23s |
| 11 | Oscar Piastri | 10 | + 1m 26s |
| 12 | Alexander Albon | 12 | + 1m 28s |
| 13 | Kevin Magnussen | 16 | + 1m 29s |
| 14 | Pierre GASLY | 17 | + 1m 31s |
| 15 | Esteban OCON | 19 | + 1m 37s |
| 16 | Logan Sargeant | 14 | + 1m 40s |
| 17 | Nico Hulkenberg | 20 | + 1 Lap |
| 18 | Valtteri BOTTAS | 13 | + 1 Lap |
| DNF | Guanyu Zhou | 15 | DNF Lap 36 |
| DNF | Nyck de Vries | 18 | DNF Lap 9 |
Here we go through the field and highlight the very best (Great) of the race, and the plodders, the over-ambitious, the out of luck, and simply hopeless (Grape).
These points get added to our Driver of the Season scores. Five points for a great nomination, and -5 for the worst or grapest driver in the pack. Then it is +2 /-2 for honourable or dishonourable mentions.
THE GREAT-EST – SERGIO PEREZ
Takes the win in the Sprint Race and Proper Race, neither were from pole position, so needed more than just luck. He kept his team mate at bay for the race, after he did get lucky with the Safety Car. Closes the Championship lead too.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS
CHARLES LECLERC – Two pole positions for main qualifying and the Sprint race show some speed is there for him and Ferrari. Usually just for street tracks these days. Third and best of the rest is all he could do. And did it so well.
FERNANDO ALONSO – No third this time, but fourth will be good enough for a season which has already surpassed expectations.
LANDO NORRIS – A few points would be welcome given he spent most of his race stuck behind Nico Hulkenberg.
THE GRAPE-EST – VALTTERI BOTTAS
Dead last and anonymous. One wonders how long he will put up with for ?
DIS-HONOURABLE MENTIONS
CARLOS SAINZ – Becoming more irrelevant at Ferrari as the races wear on.
NYCK DE VRIES – Looking more like the F1 rookie this season than better than average driver we saw score a point on debut for Williams last season. Crashing the car will never help.
Was it a good race, loads of action, tense, or just a big, fat, snooze-fest.
We rate the big race itself so we know which races to go back and watch in the off season or one to simply remember the winner for the post season quiz nights.
Note: this is for the combined races.
SEASON IMPORTANCE – 4 / 10
Another Red Bull 1-2, which we guess we’ll get used to. Perez beating Verstappen does make it slightly more interesting than it normally would.
ON TRACK ACTION – 2/10
Dull as. Aside from the inevitable Red Bulls overtaking Charles Leclerc and a few minor place changes, there was bugger all overtaking or action. An extra point given for the Nyck de Vries crash which left us with the win defining Safety Car.
ENDING 2 / 10
A pass for 10th, and car thinking about pitting for the fastest lap. There wasn’t even a chance for a repeat of the Verstappen v Russell verbal fireworks.
OVERALL RATING 8 / 30
Could be worse, hoping it isn’t, otherwise we’ll barely stay awake. At least race was early. We guess we’re just disappointed that there was no action, because theBaku circuit promises so much, yet delivered so little.
2023 SEASON RATINGS SO FAR
Want to know what we thought of previous races? Or which ones to to back and watch?
R1 – Bahrain Grand Prix –
R2 – Saudi Arabian Grand Prix – 10/30
R3 – Australian Grand Prix – 23/30
2023 F1 Season Power Rankings
Stay tuned for our Power Rankings from the race soon as it is currently being calculated and will be ready on Monday.
Who not check out last season: Our 2022 F1 Season Driver Ratings
