Vettel’s feeling in Baku, historic Aston Martin
The four-time world champion returns to the podium with a 2nd place in Baku... historic podium for Aston Martin!
Sebastian Vettel makes Aston Martin enter Formula 1 history! The German driver brought a 2nd place in Baku, which marks the first podium for the British team in the premier discipline.
A first decisive relay to make a comeback.
Jackpot for Vettel! On his new soft tires, the German took 2nd place in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku. 2nd on a unique podium, alongside Pérez and Gasly.
Translate: « I think it was a good race. We had a great pace, which was the key. » emphasized the main person concerned in the Parc Fermé on his way down from the car.
Starting 11th on the grid, Vettel immediately felt comfortable on his first stint.
I had a good start and gained a few positions. I managed my tires and when the others went through the pits, I really had a good pace to overtake Yuki (Tsunoda).
« I managed my tires »
Vettel actually extended his first stint to take the lead of the race on the 14th lap. He pitted on the 19th lap to switch to hard tires, and the four-time world champion came out P7. His comeback happened on the 36th lap, after his teammate Lance Stroll’s crash. He overtook Charles Leclerc for P5… and used Gasly’s slipstream to take P4 on the 37th lap.
« The restart worked brilliantly for me. I had new tires, which helped. A very good day, I am on cloud nine! »
« The restart worked brilliantly for me. I am on cloud nine! »
An important podium for the constructors’ standings
Verstappen got a flat tire and Hamilton went straight on the restart, allowing Vettel to eventually finish in 2nd place. This marks the first podium for the German since November 2020 and the Turkish Grand Prix. The driver is playing a team game, aiming for Aston Martin’s first Formula 1 title.
For the team, it’s great. It’s a podium we weren’t expecting. But I felt good from Friday. It feels good, I was very relaxed!
The Aston Martin team followed in the footsteps of its predecessor Force India in Baku, finishing 3rd with Pérez in the 2018 edition of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. In 2021, Aston Martin remains 6th among constructors but is catching up to AlphaTauri: the British team has 37 points, just 2 points behind the Italians’ 39 points!
