F1 Sakhir GP Live Updates - race day
By: Jake Boxall-Legge
Summary
Sergio Perez wins remarkable Sakhir GP after spin on first lap drops him to last | |
Racing Point scores first win since 2003 Brazilian GP from Esteban Ocon and Lance Stroll | |
Perez becomes first Mexican F1 winner since Pedro Rodriguez at Spa in 1970 | |
Perez hit on opening lap by Leclerc, who took himself and Verstappen out of the race, but able to capitalise on Mercedes tyre-mix up with on-track passes on Albon, Ocon and Stroll | |
Russell jumps Bottas at the start and set for victory before double-stack under SC to recover wing left on track by Jack Aitken's Williams throws race into disarray | |
Russell sent out with Bottas's tyres and has to pit again for fresh rubber after one lap behind SC | |
Russell passes Bottas, Stroll and Ocon to close on Perez before slow puncture brings him back to the pits and drops him out of the points before fighting back to 10th | |
Sainz and Ricciardo miss window for second stop under VSC to push Latifi's expired car behind barriers and emerge behind top three attempting a one-stop |
Status: Stopped
Just one race left in the tank, folks! We'll see you next weekend for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. See ya later!
That was something else. Gutting for Russell - but he'll stand on that top step one day, surely. But today, after missing two races with COVID, losing his drive for 2021, Sergio Perez gets something back.
Here's the race report from an astounding race:
Racing Point tickled pink by that result, which elevates the team back to third in the constructors'.
Ocon: "I have no words! I cried on the line, that's how much emotion there was inside. It's been a tough season, but we never stopped pushing. When there are less and less people believing in you, you have to believe in yourself."
Stroll: "Amazing race for the team. A part of me is a little disappointed, I could have won - I went too deep on the pit exit and got passed by Esteban. But it's a fantastic result for the team - first and third is what we needed for the championship."
Perez: "I'm speechless. I hope I'm not dreaming...10 years it took me. I don't know what to say, after the first lap, the race was gone. But we just didn't give up. In the end my pace was good enough to hold off George."
With that, Perez is back up to fourth in the championship standings...and he doesn't have a drive for next year.
Jubilation and heartbreak in equal measure for these drivers. But Perez winning is a feelgood story, but certainly not the one we anticipated!
Sainz gets fourth from Ricciardo, Albon and Kvyat. Bottas hangs on to eighth, and Russell gets Norris towards the end to rescue two points! But boy, that could have been Russell's win too.
Russell gets ahead of Norris on the final lap to take ninth place and he also sets the fastest lap, so it is three points for the Brit. But that hardly tells the story of his race.
It took 190 tries in Perez's career, and he finally wins! Esteban Ocon finishes second, with Lance Stroll completing the podium!
Who on earth expected this?! In possibly one of the most dramatic races in F1 history, Sergio Perez wins the Sakhir Grand Prix!
It will be a tiny crumb of comfort, but Russell is set to score his first F1 world championship point as he gets ahead of Gasly at the start of the final lap.
Racing right to the very finish here with two laps to go, as Norris gets ahead of Gasly for ninth place. Russell will be right behind both of them by the final lap.
"These tyres are terrible," Bottas tells his Mercedes team over the radio. He's currently P8 and struggling to do much more than that.
The incident involving Russell and the earlier tyre mix-up by Mercedes will be investigated after the race. Given he is currently in P13 it won't really change the outcome of his race.
Russell has to try and salvage something here. He's on the softs, he's just logged a 55.404s, and he's got a few cars to clear. He might sneak a point here.
Bottas is sinking like a stone now, as Albon and Kvyat get by the Finn. This race is turning into a disaster for Mercedes!
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