Azerbaijan Grand Prix Race Report!

Lewis Hamilton wins in Azerbaijan after an action packed race that saw both Red Bulls crash into each other and Valtteri Bottas retire from the lead with a puncture.

It was a crazy race which saw battles and crashes throughout, although at the front it didn't unfold until the latter part of the race.

Sebastian Vettel looked set to take the win until the Red Bull crash brought out the safety car and Valtteri Bottas pitted, gaining plenty of time and the position. 

When the safety car went in with just three laps to go, Vettel dived down the inside to take the lead, but a lock up forced him wide, dropping him behind team mate Kimi Raikkonen into P4.

However, it wasn't over there, and the very next lap Bottas ran over some debris, causing a rear right puncture and ending his race.

Hamilton took up the lead and didn't relinquish it, taking his first win of the season.

It was also a memorable race for Sergio Perez, who picked up his first podium since Baku in 2016.

Charles Leclerc and Brendon Hartley picked up their first points in F1, with P6 and P10 respectively.

Throughout the race, the Red Bull cars were involved in intense battling, firstly with the Renaults and then with each other. As we entered the final stage of the race, Ricciardo got racy with Verstappen and tried to go for a move down the inside. However, Max had covered the space, and Ricciardo ran into the back of him, forcing both drivers to retire on the spot.

Both drivers seemed to be at fault, although Verstappen should not have weaved so much in the braking zone.

This incident brought out the safety car and with it opened up the race in a big way. Bottas pitted and jumped Vettel, before both of them hit their troubles.

It was such an unfortunate way for Bottas' race to end who looked after his tyres so well for so long.

However, Lewis Hamilton will not be complaining, as he takes the Championship lead for the first time this season.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en-gb"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">RACE CLASSIFICATION (LAP 51/51)<br><br>What drama! WHAT A RACE!<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AzerbaijanGP?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AzerbaijanGP</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/F1?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#F1</a> <a href="https://t.co/iXRDA8ZUpS">pic.twitter.com/iXRDA8ZUpS</a></p>&mdash; Formula 1 (@F1) <a href="https://twitter.com/F1/status/990592148256034816?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">29 April 2018</a></blockquote>
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