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Sebastian Vettel scored a strong 6th place finish at the 2022 F1 Azerbaijan GP. The Aston Martin, to the surprise of many, was a strong race car as Vettel was able to keep up with others around him. Unlike a few earlier races where he had started in the top 10, he did not find himself defending from attacking drivers.
Speaking to the media after the race, Vettel revealed that the team was starting to push the limits of the car and it was starting to pay off for them. He said:
“Sixth position is really great – I think we can all be pleased with that result. We have been pushing the limits of this car, and it is starting to pay off for us now. Today, we were faster than Alfa Romeo and matched Alpine and Alpha Tauri, and that changes the game for us a little bit.”
There was even the possibility of the German fighting for 5th place in the race had he not gone off the track at Turn 3 while trying to overtake Esteban Ocon. Regarding the incident, Vettel said:
“The team did an amazing pit-stop, which enabled me to jump Lewis [Hamilton]. After that, I was sure I had got past Esteban [Ocon], but I thought he would battle more for the position, so I took to the escape road and lost some time. Without that incident, I think I could have battled for fifth position. Nevertheless, this is a great result.”
Sebastian Vettel capped off a solid weekend for us: Aston Martin
The Aston Martin team was in a buoyant mood after the 2022 F1 Azerbaijan GP. Although Lance Stroll had to retire, Sebastian Vettel gave the team its biggest points haul of the season. Reflecting on the race, team principal Mike Krack said:
“Sebastian Vettel capped a solid weekend with a good drive to sixth place in Baku today, thereby scoring eight valuable points in the constructors’ world championship. Lance [Stroll] was disadvantaged by a power unit issue in qualifying yesterday and a vibration problem today, which finally caused us to have to retire him a few laps before the end of the race.”
Krack then spoke of the team's positive outlook for Montreal, saying:
“So we had mixed fortunes this weekend, but our car showed encouraging pace throughout. Next up is Canada in just a few days’ time - one of our home Grands Prix - where we will work hard to put up a competitive and trouble-free performance for both drivers on the streets of Montreal.”
While the Silverstone-based outfit's performance is surely encouraging, it needs to be seen whether the team can replicate it on more conventional tracks. Baku has always been a peculiar track and it is slightly tough to extrapolate performance levels from this track compared to the others on the calendar.
