Formula 1, Charles Leclerc wins the Austrian GP: Key stats
Charles Leclerc has won the 2022 Austrian Grand Prix on Sunday, staying ahead of Red Bull's Max Verstappen. Notably, he passed the Dutchman on three counts and dominated the race. Mercedes ace Lewis Hamilton took third place. British GP winner Carlos Sainz was on course to finish top two but an engine failure with 14 laps to go derailed his race. Here's more.
Leclerc keeps his composure to fend off Verstappen
The final 10 laps was difficult for Leclerc with a sticking throttle. Verstappen threatened from behind but credit to the Ferrari driver for maintaining the lead. Leclerc kept his composure and drove well despite the sticking throttle affecting the gearbox. Leclerc cut Verstappen's championship lead to 38 points. He has now surpassed Sergio Perez to be second.
Hamilton collects his 186th podium finish
This is the third successive third-place finish for Hamilton this season. He has now raced to 186 career podium finishes in Formula 1. All of his podium finishes this season have been third places. Seven-time F1 champion Hamilton's finishes this season reads as 3rd, 10th, 4th, 13th, 6th, 5th, 8th, 4th, 3rd, 3rd, and 3rd. Notably, Hamilton had finished fourth in Austria last year.
68th podium finish for Verstappen
Verstappen collected his 68th podium finish. Verstappen, who has won six races this season - Saudi Arabian GP, Emilia Romagna GP, Miami GP, Spanish GP, Azerbaijan GP, and the Canadian GP - couldn't stop a resurgent Leclerc. He has enjoyed eight podium finishes (also third in Monaco). Verstappen is a three-time winner here in Austria and had claimed first position last season.
Russell maintains his consistency
After having to retire in Britain, Russell was back, securing fourth place here in Austria. He finished fourth in Bahrain, 5th in Saudi Arabia, third in Australia, 4th in Emilia Romagna, fifth in Miami, third in Spain, fifth in Monaco, third in Baku, and fourth in Canada. In 10 of the 11 races this season, Russell has consistently finished within top five.
Verstappen maintains his lead over Leclerc
The Austrian GP hosted the second sprint race on Saturday and Verstappen took his second win of the season. He earned eight points for the same and collected 19 points today. He now has 208 points in total. Leclerc, who finished second in the sprint race (7 points), took 25 points home for winning the main race on Sunday. He has 170 points.
Perez, Sainz, Russell, and Hamiton follow suit
Sergio Perez and Carlos Sainz, who were forced to retire on Sunday, is third and fourth with 151 and 133 points respectively. Russell is following suit with 8 points and leads Hamilton, who is sixth (109 points).
A look at the 2022 Constructor Standings
In terms of the Constructors, Red Bull are top with 359 points. Ferrari are second with 303 points. Mercedes are third with 237 points. McLaren and Alpine are joint-fourth with 81 points. They lead Alfa Romeo (51).
5th race win for Leclerc
Leclerc has claimed his third win this season from 11 races. He had earlier won the Bahrain GP and the Australian GP respectively. He has claimed five podium finishes in 2022. Overall, he has five race wins in his career, besides getting 18 podium finishes.
