Mercedes “not fooling ourselves” over Baku performance after Russell’s podium

In brief

George Russell was promoted from fifth to third by the collision between Carlos Sainz Jnr and Sergio Perez at the end of the race. Wolff said the team know that flattered their performance in Baku.

“Inheriting a podium and finishing third is better than we expected, but we are not fooling ourselves that, on pace today, we were P5,” said Wolff.

“We will analyse the race and weekend as a whole. The second half of our grand prix on the hard tyre was encouraging. George was able to keep the temperatures under control and, having driven within himself early in the stint, was able to deliver strong pace in the closing stages.”

Lewis Hamilton finished ninth after starting from the pit lane following a power unit change. “It was more difficult for Lewis with the traffic he faced but at moments, he showed good speed,” said Wolff.

Maini penalised for F2 start crash

Formula 2 driver Kush Maini received an unusual penalty for causing a crash at the start of yesterday’s feature race when he failed to pull away from the line. He was hit by Oliver Goethe and Pepe Marti in a crash which forced the race to be stopped.

The stewards ruled Maini stalled his car because he failed to follow its starting procedure correctly. They disqualified him from the race on and gave him a 10-second time penalty which, as he did not finish the race, becomes a five-place grid drop for the next race. Maini was also given two penalty points on his licence.

“The stewards determined that the driver of car nine [Maini] failed to engage the start set-up procedure for the start of the race,” they noted. “As a result of this error the car stalled on the grid and a collision involving at least two other cars followed. The driver of car nine is found to be wholly responsible for this collision.”

McLaren fined for pit infringement

McLaren were fined €5,000 (£4,200) as members of their team entered the pit lane prior to the end of the race as they were heading to the parc ferme.

“While it is not unusual for team personnel to move towards the parc ferme area before the end of the race, McLaren had team members and equipment in the pit lane while other teams were still pitting and thus created a potentially unsafe condition,” the stewards noted.

A near-miss occured at the same race last year involving Esteban Ocon and a group of people when the Alpine driver made a late pit stop.

Links

Bottas’ unexpected F1 contentment: Coffee, cycling, and contract optimism (New York Times)

'Since they announced acquiring the team and joining Formula One, just knowing how Audi as a brand, what they’ve done in motorsports, in any category, they’ve always got there eventually and won. So that’s the big thing for me. And being a car manufacturer, instead of a private team, is really important in this sport. I’ve seen that as well.'

Craigie leads Mercedes one-two in Karting World Championship’s OK-J final (Formula Scout)

'He tucked in behind for the chicane then coming to the next braking zone dived to the inside of Baglin, who was sent wide. Both went off exiting the corner, and Craigie was ahead. Baglin then pulled off a switchback move at the penultimate corner, but had not fully cleared Craigie as he turned into the final corner and the pair collided.'

Trees coming down, cones going up as F1 construction ramps up on Las Vegas Strip (Fox)

'A recent F1 construction update announced major traffic closures along the Strip starting late on Sunday, Sept. 15. The closures will aid MGM in the construction of the Bellagio Fountain Club, but are expected to impact both drivers and pedestrians.'

Fernando Barrichello takes authoritative maiden win at Red Bull Ring (Euroformula Open)

'The Brazilian was in pole in the reversed grid, ahead of Shin, Simonazzi, Revesz, Pearson, Benavides and Garfias, but the start was (delayed) behind Safety Car for two laps.'

We always endeavour to credit original sources. Got a tip for a link relating to single-seater motorsport? Please send it to us via the contact form.

Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and go ad-free

Social media

Notable posts from X (formerly Twitter), TikTok and more:

Unbelievable that Leclerc left the door open there.#F1 #AzerbaijanGP #RaceFans

— Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine) September 15, 2024

Glad to see stewards not taking any sides in the Perez/Sainz clash!
Each tried to intiminate the other and it just went wrong …

— Tiff Needell 🏁 (@tiff_tv) September 15, 2024

Before today gets away, a massive appreciation for @IndyCaronNBC and the work they’ve done since 2009. @peacock is unrivaled, the talent is exceptional and even @paultracy3 was tolerable. I know it’s a sad final day for so many, and I hope they get to savor their final race.

— Jenna Fryer (@JennaFryer) September 15, 2024

12 years ago, I was celebrating my win at the European Karting Championship in the Juniors, alongside Max, who took the win in Seniors at my local circuit PFI.

This weekend, PFI is hosting the World Karting Championship and it reminded me of the hard work, the passion, and the… pic.twitter.com/9TXhO1hDNa

— George Russell (@GeorgeRussell63) September 14, 2024

Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and go ad-free

• Find more official F1 accounts to follow in the F1 Twitter Directory

Comment of the day

Oscar Piastri’s decision to ignore his race engineer’s recommendations and seize his opportunity to overtake Charles Leclerc when he had the chance was widely praised:

Good. Too many drivers driving processional races by not actually racing due to advice from people who have never raced a car. Data is good for helping with decision-making, but it can’t predict everything.
An Sionnach

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday to Adam Milleneuve (F1 Badger), Joao Pedro Cq, Handcart and Discotheque!

On this day in motorsport

• 15 years ago today Renault chiefs Flavio Briatore and Pat Symonds stood down after their roles in the Crashgate affair came to light