Russian Grand Prix review

After Lewis Hamilton closed in on a third drivers’ championship with victory in Sochi, F1i looks back at how the Russian Grand Prix unfolded and revisits its podium prediction

The race in 100 words

Rosberg excelled in qualifying and led away from pole, withstanding Hamilton’s early attack before the safety car was deployed to clear away Hulkenberg and Ericsson’s cars after a crash at Turn 2. On the restart Rosberg reported throttle problems and retired before Grosjean crashed heavily at Turn 3 to cause another safety car. Hamilton led comfortably, with Vettel muscling past Raikkonen and moving up to second with Perez third after an early stop. Bottas and Raikkonen passed Perez on the penultimate lap before the latter took out his countryman, receiving a post-race penalty which handed Mercedes the constructors’ title.

Driver of the weekend

Sergio Perez produced one of those excellent drives he has in his locker which is usually based on an impressive feel for the Pirelli tyres. Stopping during the early safety car period caused by Grosjean’s crash, Perez ran quickly in clear air to ensure he was a net second on the road as the rest of the field pit. Vettel passed him in to Turn 13 but Perez’s pace was so good the squabbling pair of Bottas and Raikkonen failed to close on him. Only in the final laps did he start to struggle but he kept Bottas at bay until 23 corners from the end when he again lost out at Turn 13 and Raikkonen followed his fellow Finn through. However, Perez got his reward when the Williams and Ferrari tangled just a few corners later to secure the fifth podium of his career.

Move of the race

Carlos Sainz did not look like he would be racing after his heavy crash in FP3, but he played his part in some excellent fighting with Daniel Ricciardo early in the race. At the start of lap 18, Ricciardo attacked Sainz in to Turn 2 but the Toro Rosso held the inside line in to Turn 3, leaving the two to go side-by-side at high speed through a corner which had seen a number of crashes throughout the weekend. Sainz gave Ricciardo just enough room and the Australian balanced the car beautifully around the outside to keep part of his Red Bull alongside the Toro Rosso, allowing him to complete an impressive move by diving up the inside in to Turn 4.

Prediction accuracy

Podium: 1. Lewis Hamilton, 2. Sebastian Vettel, 3. Sergio Perez

F1i’s pre-race prediction: 1. Sebastian Vettel, 2. Lewis Hamilton, 3. Kimi Raikkonen