The Japan Times - Five talking points at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix

Red Bull winging it

Three races, three poles, three wins, two 1-2s, two fastest laps - Red Bull arrive in Azerbaijan on a magical roll. Double world champion Max Verstappen kept his cool in Melbourne to fend off Lewis Hamilton and steer clear of the triple red-flag drama, while Sergio Perez sliced through the field from last to claim fifth, and the fastest lap, in the latest display of the Red Bulls' speed supremacy over the rest of the grid. Team boss Christian Horner praised Verstappen's "great patience" in not getting embroiled in a Mercedes' dog fight at the start, and was nonplussed at Mercedes' pace. With two wins to his teammate's one Verstappen leads Perez by 15 points, the rejuvenated Fernando Alonso is third, nine points behind the Mexican for Aston Martin, with Hamilton seven points further back approaching the fourth race of the season.

Mercedes revival?

Toto Wolff and his Mercedes men left the Australian Grand Prix with an unexpected spring in their step. Lewis Hamilton's second place gave the fallen F1 giants reason to believe they are finally getting to grips with their mercurial car. With only one win after a chastening 2022, this season began in Bahrain with "one of their wort days in racing". An uptick in performance in Saudi Arabia offered encouragement, while in Melbourne George Russell was also flying until his car caught fire. Team principal Wolff was quick to insist there was "no magic bullet" to transform a car that has struggled since last year's shift in the technical landscape. But the Austrian did concede they are understanding their machine much better. "We have defined a clear direction where we need to go and I believe we are on the right trajectory."

Sprint time

Baku stages the first of 2023's six sprint races. Verstappen has the best sprint record, winning three of the six held since they were introduced in 2021. Baku is the first street circuit to hold a sprint race, with Horner not alone among the team principals wary of the prospect of prangs on a circuit that has a well-deserved reputation for producing the unexpected. "It's absolutely ludicrous to be doing the first sprint race of the year in a street race like Azerbaijan," Horner said in Australia. Whilst acknowledging for the fans excitement was almost assured, from a team's perspective "all you can do is trash your car and it costs a lot of money around there." Under an all-new format agreed by teams in Melbourne and voted through by the FIA on Tuesday, Saturday's 100km dash will now be a stand alone fixture of the weekend, with its own qualifying. Unlike 2021 and 2022 the sprint result will no longer shape the grid for the main event on Sunday, qualifying for the grand prix to be held on Friday. After Baku, sprints will feature in Austria, Belgium, Qatar, Austin and Interlagos.

Tough times at Ferrari

New Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur reckons there are "tonnes of room for improvement on the car" - Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz will certainly be hoping that's the case. Two retirements sandwiching seventh in Jeddah left Leclerc bemoaning "the worst start to the season ever", while Sainz seethed at a late time-penalty that dropped him from fourth to out of the points in Melbourne. That's left F1's most iconic team trailing behind Red Bull, Aston Martin and Mercedes in the constructors championship. With signficant upgrades planned from Miami onwards Vasseur says he has the feeling "we are moving in the right direction". Baku though has not proved a happy hunting ground for the scuderia, with only three podiums and a double DNF last year since 2016.

Baku roulette

Baku boasts the longest straight in F1, the 2.2 kilometre Neftchilar Avenue alongside the Caspian Sea where cars break from speeds of 350kmh into the 90 degree turn one, the circuit then snaking its way through the sinuous medieval city gate section where even the slightest of mistakes can spell disaster. A different winner for each of the six races staged here is an indication of the drama that lies in store for Verstappen and company this weekend. The Dutch ace won last year but won't be taking anything for granted after his car packed up with the 2021 race at his mercy five laps from the chequered flag.

T.Ikeda--JT