Piastri wins F1’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix after late crash knocked out Perez and Sainz

BAKU, Azerbaijan (AP) — Oscar Piastri overtook Charles Leclerc to win the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on Sunday as rivals crashed behind him while Formula 1 title challenger Lando Norris staged a stunning comeback to finish ahead of standings leader Max Verstappen.

McLaren’s Piastri started second behind Leclerc but took the lead with a daring swoop past the Ferrari driver into the first corner on lap 20 of 51.

Red Bull’s Sergio Perez tried to attack Leclerc for second late on but ended up colliding with the second Ferrari of Carlos Sainz Jr., who was close behind. George Russell ended up third for Mercedes as the race finished under speed restrictions.

“That was probably the most stressful afternoon of my life,” Piastri, who took his second career win, told his team over the radio just after the race.

Norris was following close behind Sainz and Perez when they crashed and recounted the experience of driving into flying debris.

“Driving full gas into a into a wall of carbon fiber on the penultimate lap, I mean that was pretty crazy,” he said. “You couldn’t see anything.”