There was no stopping Nico Rosberg this weekend as he took the pole, led the most laps, posted the fastest single lap and took the victory in the first race in the Republic of Azerbaijan.
This kind of performance has become almost second nature to the driver of the No. 6 Mercedes AMG Petronas car as he took the top step of the podium for the 19th time in his career and fifth of the 2016 season. It’s only the second time this season that he achieved a “grand slam” of starting on the pole, leading the most laps, posting the fastest single lap and winning the race.
Sebastian Vettel was outmatched by Rosberg and brought his car home to a runner-up finish in his No. 5 Scuderia Ferrari. Sergio Pérez, who was handed a five-place grid penalty following a gear change and went from second to seventh in the starting order, rounded out the podium in his No. 11 Sahara Force India-Mercedes.
Kimi Räikkönen brought the other Ferrari home to a fourth-place finish. Lewis Hamilton was a non-factor for much of the race and brought his Mercedes home to round out the top-five.
Valtteri Bottas finished sixth in his No. 77 Williams Martini Racing-Mercedes. Daniel Ricciardo finished seventh in his No. 3 Red Bull Racing-TAG Heuer. Teammate Max Verstappen came home eighth in his No. 33 car. Nico Hülkenberg finished ninth in his No. 27 Force India Mercedes. Felipe Massa rounded out the top-10 in his No. 19 Williams Mercedes.
As for the Haas F1 Team, Romain Grosjean finished 13th and Esteban Gutiérrez.
Rosberg leaves Baku with a 24-point lead over teammate Hamilton in the Drivers’ Championship. Mercedes leaves with an 81-point lead over Ferrari in the Constructors’ Championship.
In two weeks, Formula 1 returns to the Austrian Alps to run the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring.
