As it happened: Azerbaijan 2017 - The race

• 13:30

  Hey there fact fans, welcome to live coverage of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix!

• 13:30

  You're all geared up and eagerly anticipating this one, aren't you? Yes? Yes?

  No, me neither, but hey, it could still be interesting. That's the thing about F1, you just never know what is going to happen.

• 13:31

  Last year, Baku hosted the European Grand Prix, but this time they've got the race in their own name, so it's the first running of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

• 13:32

  Circuit Data

  Baku City Circuit
  Local timezone	+04:00 GMT
  First race	2016
  Number of laps	51
  Circuit length	6.003km
  Race distance	306.049km
  Start offset	0.104km

• 13:32
  Medium

  Soft

  Supersoft
• 13:32

  There's been a lot going on so far this weekend, with many drivers struggling to get through turn eight without incident, and plenty of locking up, running wide, and generally making things look difficult.

• 13:34

  The pit lane has opened, and cars are piling out to get their practice starts and installation laps completed.

• 13:35

  Hamilton snatched pole position yesterday ahead of Bottas for an all-Mercedes front row. Red Bull had been looking fast earlier in the weekend but had to settle for fifth.

• 13:36

  Starting Grid

  1	L Hamilton	Mercedes
  2	V Bottas	Mercedes
  3	K Räikkönen	Ferrari
  4	S Vettel	Ferrari
  5	M Verstappen	Red Bull
  6	S Pérez	Force India
  7	E Ocon	Force India
  8	L Stroll	Williams
  9	F Massa	Williams
  10	D Ricciardo	Red Bull

• 13:36

  Ricciardo crashed in the final qualifying session, which made the fight for pole that much more interesting, but sort of ruined his day a little.

• 13:37

  Both the McLaren drivers have been hit with yet more huge engine related penalties, so they are at the rear of the field. Jolyon Palmer is last, though, after being unable to participate in qualifying following a fire destroyed his Renault in FP3.

• 13:38

  Tweet from @Max33Verstappen: My goal today is to gain a few places. That won’t be easy, but I’m up for the challenge!

• 13:38

  It's hot, hot, hot in Azerbaijan. Everyone on the grid is shading their eyes, or hiding under sun umbrellas.

• 13:39

  

  27°C
  Track	48°C
  Humidity	71%
  Wind speed	0.0mps

• 13:40

  Fastest Session Times

  Free Practice 1	M Verstappen	1:44.410
  Free Practice 2	M Verstappen	1:43.362
  Free Practice 3	V Bottas	1:42.742
  Qualifying	L Hamilton	1:40.593

• 13:42

  Max Verstappen, on the sweltering grid: Bit tricky. Let’s say we have a good start, everything changes. The most important thing on lap one is to stay out of trouble… it’ll be an interesting battle, I think, with Ferrari. The whole season, I don’t know what it is, a bit more grip, faster cars, it seems to suit me more than last year’s cars, so I’m really happy these rules came in.

• 13:45

  Stoffel Vandoorne, at the back of the grid: We saw a lot of mistakes on Friday, so I hope a little bit of mayhem is going to happen for us.

• 13:46

  Drivers have made their way to the front of the grid for the national anthem, and that super-huge flag is blowing beautifully in the breeze.

• 13:50

  Palmer has really been struggling this weekend. He came into the weekend in a bad mood and complained about always being asked why his season is so rubbish. Then he crashed into the barriers at turn eight, and then his car burst into flames. It's not quite McLaren bad, but still pretty bad.

• 13:51

  

  Magnussen climbs into his car with about ten minutes to go till lights out.

• 13:53

  2017 Race Wins

  Pos	Driver	Total
  1	S Vettel	3
  2	L Hamilton	3
  3	V Bottas	1

• 13:54

  Both Force India and Williams did a great job in qualifying yesterday. Lance Stroll got through to his second Q3, but it was the first time he was able to participate in the session, and he beat his teammate to eighth place.

• 13:54

  Tweet from @McLarenF1: Time for a final pre-race debrief with the boys and their engineers.

• 13:57

  Risk of rain - 0%.

• 13:57

  Looks like the majority of the field have opted for the softest of the three compounds, the supersofts, as their starting tyre. Only Grosjean, Ericsson and Vandoorne have got the soft yellow stripes on their cars, and they are 16th, 17th and 18th respectively.

• 13:59

  The track temperature has gone up a few degrees already, up to 51 from 48 when I posted the weather conditions earlier. Humidity down to 53%.

• 13:59

  Tweet from @jakenichol1498: You just know what's going to happen. McLaren will somehow be near points, then go pop on the penultimate lap

• 14:00

  The formation lap is go, some slow movers off the line but they've cleared the grid and the personnel are dashing back to the pit lane.

• 14:01

  It's a long old lap for Hamilton to lead the field round, warming up the tyres as best as possible.

• 14:01

  Jolyon Palmer has reported engine vibrations back to the engineers. That's a worry for the Renault crew.

• 14:02

  Last year a one stop strategy was the preferred option, but there's room for a two stop if the strategists so desire.

• 14:03

  Slow finish to the formation lap, but they're all in position now.

• 14:03

  Race started.

• 14:04 Lap 1

  Hamilton keeps his position into the first corner.

• 14:04 Lap 1

  Yellow flags for a couple of collisions.

• 14:04 Lap 1

  One of the Toro Rossos ran wide into the first corner and clipped his teammate coming back on track.

• 14:05 Lap 1

  Räikkönen and Bottas appear to have had another first lap collision, just like in Canada. The Mercedes crew are in the pit lane with a spare nose ready and waiting.

• 14:05 Lap 1

  Sainz was tipped into a spin by Kvyat. "Dany came back like a madman to the track," he reported.

• 14:06 Lap 1

  Replays of the other incident look like Bottas was out of control and hit the side of the Finn in the Ferrari.

• 14:06 Lap 2

  Vettel has surged forward thanks to the mayhem around him, he's now directly behind Hamilton - which is the battle we want to see for the championship.

• 14:07 Lap 2

  Bottas has had a supremely slow lap thanks to damage to his car, he's just made it back to the pit lane for a patch up.

• 14:08 Lap 3

  Team radio from Max Verstappen: "I think I have damage from debris."

  "We think you had debris in your rad duct."

• 14:08 Lap 3

  Bottas has rejoined the field a full lap down, already. That's going to be a difficult afternoon's work for the Mercedes driver.

• 14:09 Lap 4

  Turn 1 incident involving Daniil Kvyat and Carlos Sainz noted.

  Turn 2 incident involving Kimi Räikkönen and Valtteri Bottas noted.

• 14:09 Lap 4

  Räikkönen has been reporting some unusual handling of his car, which makes sense considering he was battered by Bottas.

• 14:10 Lap 4

  A huge battle is ongoing between the two Sauber drivers and the two Mercedes as well, Vandoorne leads Alonso with Ericsson ahead and Wehrlein tucked up behind the two.

• 14:11 Lap 4

  Closer replays show that Kvyat didn't actually hit his teammate, but the sight of a car rejoining like that scared Sainz into a spin.

• 14:11 Lap 5

  Romain Grosjean has taken an early pit stop to take on the supersofts and ditch the softs early.

• 14:11 Lap 5

  Tweet from @ToroRossoSpy: So @Carlossainz55 has some overtaking to do and he's started it straight away: he gets past PAL for P17 and is now chasing ALO

• 14:12 Lap 5

  Hamilton out front and setting the fastest lap of the race at this early stage.

• 14:12 Lap 6

  Team radio from Marcus Ericsson: "I have no battery!"

• 14:13 Lap 6

  Pérez is up into third but he's being chased by Verstappen.

  One to Watch

  S Pérez	vs.	M Verstappen
  3rd	+0.879s	4th

• 14:13 Lap 6

  Ricciardo has come into the pit lane for an early stop, doesn't appear to be any damage so just a mix of strategies for the Red Bull team. He's taken on the soft tyres, so speculation he might run to the end of the race from here.

• 14:15 Lap 7

  Turn 1 incident involving Daniil Kvyat and Carlos Sainz - no investigation necessary.

• 14:16 Lap 8

  Ricciardo's engineer tells him some debris was overheating the brakes but they've cleared it in that pit stop so now he's free to race.

• 14:17 Lap 8

  Turn 2 incident involving K Räikkönen and V Bottas - no action warranted.

• 14:17 Lap 8

  Driver Positions

  Pos		Driver	Stops
  1	0	L Hamilton	0
  2	2	S Vettel	0
  3	3	S Pérez	0
  4	1	M Verstappen	0
  5	-2	K Räikkönen	0
  6	3	F Massa	0
  7	0	E Ocon	0
  8	0	L Stroll	0
  9	4	N Hülkenberg	0
  10	2	K Magnussen	0

• 14:18 Lap 9

  Jolyon Palmer reports smoke from the car, and then he's running slowly. He makes it back to the pit lane, and crawls to a halt with instructions to switch off his poorly Renault.

• 14:19 Lap 9

  Alonso is hustling Marcus Ericsson for 12th place, and oof, he outdrags the car ahead and takes the position.

• 14:21 Lap 10

  Team radio from Romain Grosjean: "I just ask for one thing Gary. If the car gets dangerous because of the brakes, please stop me."

• 14:21 Lap 10

  Hülkenberg is told: "We may have a blocked right front brake duct." Bottas has really spread debris far and wide.

• 14:22 Lap 11

  Yellow flags for Daniil Kvyat, whose Toro Rosso is sitting adjacent to the wall, gently smoking.

• 14:22 Lap 11

  Verstappen is on a mission to get past Pérez for that third place, but he can't make it stick early in the lap. He's jinking this way and that but Pérez has made that Force India as wide as possible.

• 14:23 Lap 12

  Oh no, Verstappen has backed off that battle with Pérez and his engine is sounding pretty sick.

• 14:24 Lap 12

  The Red Bull is still going but dropping down the order rapidly.

• 14:24 Lap 12

  Team radio from Max Verstappen: "Yep, here we go again."

• 14:25 Lap 12

  Safety car deployed.

• 14:25 Lap 13

  All drivers dive into the pit lane, Hamilton, Vettel, Pérez, Räikkönen, watch them all go.

• 14:26 Lap 13

  Räikkönen had a terrible stop, but Vettel's was good. Doesn't make too much difference at this point, with the safety car controlling the pace.

• 14:26 Lap 13

  Lance Stroll hasn't taken the opportunity to pit, so he's up to third place.

• 14:27 Lap 13

  Verstappen has made it back to the pit lane, and the mechanics are having a good look in and around the car to see if they can recover the situation.

• 14:27 Lap 13

  Nico Hülkenberg also opted not to come in for a safety car inspired pit stop.

• 14:28 Lap 13

  "It's the end for us," Verstappen is told, and that makes it four of the last six races that have seen a DNF for young Max.

• 14:29 Lap 14

  Lance Stroll has taken a pit stop this time round, on the face of it that's a poor decision, but the team probably didn't want to stack their cars.

• 14:30 Lap 14

  Ricciardo, meanwhile, has pitted for the second time, and has now taken on the supersofts once more.

• 14:30 Lap 14

  Meanwhile, the mechanics are still trying to figure out how to recover that Toro Rosso.

• 14:31 Lap 14

  Hülkenberg has also pitted, so everyone has now stopped at least once.

• 14:33 Lap 15

  Tweet from @TheMrJourneyer: This is good news for Bottas. With Hulk and Stroll stopping, that means he's not at the back, so he'll get to unlap himself.

  And there he goes, Bottas winds through the traffic and goes on his way.

• 14:35 Lap 16

  Now it's worth noting that the top nine drivers are all on the yellow striped tyres, with Ricciardo the first on the supersofts in tenth.

• 14:36 Lap 16

  Safety car in this lap.

• 14:37 Lap 16

  Hamilton puts his foot down early, taking the restart very quickly. Vettel was caught napping and Pérez has closed right up behind the Ferrari.

• 14:37 Lap 17

  Pérez takes the position briefly, but then dropped back behind the Ferrari into turn two.

• 14:37 Lap 17

  Pérez is followed by Felipe Massa in the Williams, with Esteban Ocon close behind him.

• 14:38 Lap 17

  Safety car deployed!

• 14:38 Lap 17

  Marshal is dashing around on track picking up debris, and replays show that it's pieces of Räikkönen's car that just fell off under higher speeds.

• 14:39 Lap 18

  Safety car through the pit lane.

  Although it looks like the marshals have finished their business.

• 14:39 Lap 18

  Hamilton gets a warning from the pit wall that he was close to passing the safety car before the line last time round. He argues that it was fine.

• 14:41 Lap 18

  At least three separate incidents at that restart explain why there is debris strewn everywhere.

• 14:42 Lap 18

  Team radio to Daniel Ricciardo: "Daniel, down this straight, stay in the middle of the track. Just watch for debris on the right hand side as you come to turn fifteen."

• 14:42 Lap 19

  Safety car in this lap.

• 14:42 Lap 19

  Lots of weaving from all drivers, desperately trying to keep temperature in their tyres.

• 14:43 Lap 19

  Hamilton complaining about the speed of the safety car, again. He did that last time, and seemed to cope okay with the pace and the restart and all that jazz.

• 14:45 Lap 19

  Hamilton backed up hugely and Vettel bumped into the back of him... pulled alongside the Mercedes and road raged into the side. Drama!

• 14:45 Lap 20

  Track is clear.

• 14:45 Lap 20

  Two Force Indias collided, Ocon hit Pérez, who is dropping down the order.

• 14:45 Lap 20

  Yellow flags.

• 14:46 Lap 20

  Räikkönen is running super slowly, he's got a puncture on his right rear tyre.

• 14:46 Lap 20

  Somehow, amongst the chaos, Felipe Massa is up into third, with Lance Stroll just behind him!

• 14:46 Lap 20

  Replays show Ocon was passing Pérez and just squeezed his teammate into the wall, there was nowhere Sergio could go.

• 14:47 Lap 21

  Safety car deployed.

• 14:47 Lap 21

  Ocon picked up plenty of damage too, and he's at the rear of the field as well.

• 14:47 Lap 21

  Kimi is trying to get back to the pit lane but that tyre is flapping around like crazy, and ripping his Ferrari to pieces.

• 14:48 Lap 21

  Both Force India drivers are in the pit lane.

• 14:48 Lap 21

  Räikkönen has made it back to the pit lane, and the mechanics have a quick look, but it's race over for the Finn.

• 14:49 Lap 21

  Ocon has rejoined the action, but it's not looking so rosy for Pérez.

• 14:50 Lap 22

  Turn 16 incident involving Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton noted.

• 14:52 Lap 22

  The marshalls are still dashing about recovering debris. Feel sorry for these chaps, in their second race weekend, it's chaos.

• 14:52 Lap 22

  Session stopped.

• 14:54

  All the cars are now returning to the pit lane and we can all take a breath!

• 14:55

  Driver Positions

  Pos		Driver	Stops
  1	0	L Hamilton	3
  2	2	S Vettel	3
  3	6	F Massa	3
  4	4	L Stroll	3
  5	5	D Ricciardo	4
  6	7	N Hülkenberg	3
  7	5	K Magnussen	3
  8	11	F Alonso	3
  9	6	C Sainz	3
  10	6	R Grosjean	4

• 14:57

  We're seeing replays of the Vettel/Hamilton incident. Hamilton does appear to slow a LOT in the corner, but there's not really an excuse for Vettel pulling alongside and bashing him in rage.

• 15:00

  Drivers are out of their car and engaging in various activities. Ricciardo is having a chat with Helmut Marko. Ocon also explaining himself to the team who don't appear to have sympathy for him.

• 15:00

  Tweet from @adamcooperF1: HAM slowing is definitely questionable but if VET's move was in any junior formula there would be a huge penalty...

• 15:00

  Tweet from @HaasF1Team: Both cars being investigated for any potential damage keeping in mind the amount of debris that was littered around

• 15:01

  There are FIA bods loitering up and down the pit lane to make sure no one does anything they aren't supposed to.

• 15:02

  Grosjean is having a break in the garage, sitting on one of the mechanics chairs and looking up at the screens. Vettel has half taken his overalls off, helmet off, having a chat with the team. Alonso also deep in conversation with engineers.

• 15:02

  Turn 16 incident involving Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton under investigation.

• 15:04

  A bizarre contraption is running round the track - it's like a golf cart, slightly upgraded to be more like a batmobile, and it's pulling a rake of some sort behind it. Presumably this is a patented Baku Debris Clearing Vehicle.

• 15:05

  Race will resume at 18:15.

• 15:06

  Jolyon Palmer, retired on lap 9: "We had a misfire on the way to the grid, and it was just getting worse through the race and eventually we just had to stop the engine. It’s one of those weekends. I think I’ve done 30 laps this weekend, I’ve never had a weekend like it. It’s a shame, I was hoping for a chaos race, which is what’s happening out there."

• 15:08

  Tweet from @toomuchracing: Felipe Massa could win this race...

• 15:09

  Making the most of the opportunity, the Force India crew have got Sergio Pérez's car back up and running. He'll join two laps down.

• 15:11

  Incredibly, we're not yet halfway through the race. Restart in just a few minutes.

• 15:13

  Pérez is instructed he'll be able to rejoin and gain one lap under the safety car rules. And now Ferrari have managed to get Räikkönen back out as well! Amazing work from the crews here.

• 15:15

  Pérez and Räikkönen are off, out on track unlapping themselves, whilst the rest of the field are now waiting to get the call to go from the pit lane.

• 15:15 Lap 23

  Yellow flags and safety car as Hamilton leads the pack out of the pit lane.

• 15:16 Lap 23

  Staggered that the FIA haven't come to any conclusion of the Vettel/Hamilton incident. Now they are in the exact same position with another safety car restart about to happen.

• 15:17 Lap 23

  Safety car in this lap.

• 15:17 Lap 23

  It's happening again, Hamilton slows the pack up, Vettel isn't falling for it this time and pulls alongside.

• 15:18 Lap 23

  Tweet from @pirellisport: Everyone on supersoft for the final sprint. Let's see what happens. All bets are off....

• 15:18 Lap 24

  Track is clear.

• 15:18 Lap 24

  Hamilton gets away with Vettel close behind. Ricciardo bombs past two cars into the first corner to move into third place.

• 15:18 Lap 24

  Massa did report he might have a problem with his car, and he's dropped back behind his teammate to sit fifth.

• 15:19 Lap 24

  The replay of that Ricciardo move show a beautiful overtake - he just left braking far later than the other two, took the inside line and made it stick.

• 15:20 Lap 25

  Massa comes under pressure from Nico Hülkenberg, and then somehow Kevin Magnussen dives to the other side of them both and moves up into fifth!

• 15:20 Lap 25

  The Williams is bouncing down the track like crazy, and he's slowing considerably.

• 15:21 Lap 25

  Nico Hülkenberg has hit the wall, the front right wheel hanging off that Renault as he drops to the rear of the field.

• 15:22 Lap 26

  DRS enabled.

• 15:22 Lap 26

  Felipe Massa has made it back to the pit lane but it's over for the Williams.

• 15:23 Lap 27

  Incidents involving Kimi Räikkönen and Sergio Pérez under investigation - working on the car outside of the fast lane.

• 15:23 Lap 27

  Double DNF for Renault as Hülkenberg is out with front wing damage.

• 15:24 Lap 27

  Team radio from Pascal Wehrlein: "Can I pass Marcus?"

  "If you're quicker, yes of course."

• 15:25 Lap 27

  Fernando Alonso is currently running sixth. Currently. Don't get excited. Long way to go.

• 15:26 Lap 28

  Haven't managed one of these yet, with all the stop/start action.

  Gap Analysis

  Pos	Driver	Gap
  1st	HAM	1:45.659
  2nd	VET	+2.296
  3rd	RIC	+5.148
  4th	STR	+6.234
  5th	MAG	+14.173

• 15:27 Lap 28

  Hamilton's head rest is wobbling at high speeds, looks like it could come off at any second.

• 15:28 Lap 29

  Hamilton gets the call about his head rest, "Just see if you can pull it back into position on the straight." He is trying.

• 15:30 Lap 30

  Team radio from Lewis Hamilton: "If this thing comes off, what's happening?"

  "Er, we're just having a look at the moment."

• 15:32 Lap 31

  Hamilton is called in to the pit lane, to get the headrest fixed. The crew are waiting in the pit lane, gaffa tape at the ready.

• 15:32 Lap 32

  Team radio to Lewis Hamilton: "We've been instructed, we have to pit this lap."

• 15:32 Lap 32

  10 second stop/go penalty for Sebastian Vettel - dangerous driving.

• 15:33 Lap 32

  "When did I do dangerous driving?" Vettel asks, like an idiot.

• 15:34 Lap 33

  Hamilton pitted and rejoined down in ninth position. Vettel currently leads, with a penalty hanging over his head.

• 15:34 Lap 33

  Ricciardo is in line to inherit the lead here, with Lance Stroll behind him!

• 15:35 Lap 33

  Hamilton is sitting behind Bottas now, I can't see that situation lasting very long.

• 15:36 Lap 34

  Team radio to Kevin Magnussen: "Absolutely amazing job, you are in fourth position!"

• 15:36 Lap 34

  Vettel comes in to the pit lane, and sits in the pit box for the eternal ten seconds. And off he goes. No work done on the car by the crew, they just want him to get going as soon as possible.

• 15:36 Lap 34

  Vettel has rejoined just in front of Hamilton!

• 15:37 Lap 34

  Drive through penalties for Kimi Räikkönen and Sergio Pérez - working on the car outside of the fast lane.

• 15:37 Lap 34

  Team radio from Lewis Hamilton: "10 second penalty is not enough for driving behaviour like that."

• 15:38 Lap 35

  Let's just revel in the top three for the moment: Ricciardo, Stroll and Magnussen.

• 15:39 Lap 35

  Pérez and Räikkönen have taken their penalties, they're last and one lap down.

• 15:40 Lap 36

  Tweet from @ForceIndiaF1: Drive through for Checo. He serves it immediately and returns to track still ahead of RAI.

• 15:40 Lap 36

  Vettel makes a pass on Fernando Alonso, whilst the pair are distracted Hamilton moves in to position but doesn't have the space to take the position.

• 15:41 Lap 37

  Hamilton does make it past the McLaren and moves in seventh, still chasing the Ferrari.

• 15:41 Lap 37

  Grosjean is on the radio complaining about, you guessed it, his brakes. He thinks they are done.

• 15:42 Lap 37

  Hamilton is firmly in the rear view mirror of Vettel, he desperately wants to get ahead of his new nemesis.

• 15:42 Lap 37

  Romain Grosjean comes into the pit lane, race over for the Haas... disappointing when you consider his teammate is currently in line for a podium.

• 15:43 Lap 38

  Scratch that, Magnussen loses two places in one go - Ocon and Bottas have moved ahead.

• 15:44 Lap 38

  Super slo mo replays show the two Sauber drivers running far too close together, bit of carbon fibre goes flying, but they both appear to have escaped unscathed.

• 15:45 Lap 39

  Vettel overtakes Magnussen, but Hamilton follows him through so no breathing space for the Ferrari driver yet.

• 15:47 Lap 40

  Valtteri Bottas passes Esteban Ocon to move into third place. Great recovery from that early incident, that was admittedly his own fault.

• 15:49 Lap 41

  Vettel has closed the gap to Ocon super quickly, and is looking for a way past the Force India driver.

• 15:49 Lap 41

  Team radio to Sergio Pérez: "Checo, if your seat is really broken, we would have to retire the car."

  "Yea, it is really broken, I'm moving around."

  "Okay, then we're not happy."

• 15:49 Lap 41

  Pérez returns to the pit lane and retires from the race.

• 15:51 Lap 42

  Vettel takes the risk and passes Ocon with the smallest of margins against the following wall, but he's done it and moved into fourth.

• 15:52 Lap 43

  Tweet from @MarcusSimmons54: Sergio Perez is the first Mexican to retire twice from the same Grand Prix.

• 15:53 Lap 43

  Hamilton uses the DRS zone to catch and move alongside Ocon, and he holds the line. Ocon does a great job to leave enough space and the pair make it through the corner with Hamilton getting past.

• 15:54 Lap 44

  Gap Analysis

  Pos	Driver	Gap
  1st	RIC	1:45.055
  2nd	STR	+5.390
  3rd	BOT	+14.258
  4th	VET	+18.737
  5th	HAM	+20.548

• 15:55 Lap 44

  Team radio to Lance Stroll: "Okay Lance, we need green sectors every lap now."

• 15:56 Lap 45

  Sauber have now decided to get involved and allowed Wehrlein ahead of Ericsson, that's tenth place for Pascal.

• 15:56 Lap 45

  Team radio to Stoffel Vandoorne: "Points on offer if you can get both Saubers."

• 15:56 Lap 45

  Seems like Vandoorne was threatening to overtake Wehrlein there, so they allowed him to get past his teammate so as not to risk that final points position.

• 15:58 Lap 46

  Alonso has a 30 second gap to the Sauber behind, so his team offer him a pit stop if he wants. He declines but does say it's all quite risky in the corners. "Just bring it home," he is told.

• 15:59 Lap 47

  Sebastian Vettel sets the fastest lap of the race so far - 1:43.630.

• 15:59 Lap 47

  Five laps to go.

• 15:59 Lap 47

  Hamilton asks if the team can get Bottas to slow down and deliver some dirty air to Vettel.

• 16:00 Lap 47

  However, Bottas is on a mission to try and catch Lance Stroll. He's got under six seconds to recover, and five laps to do it in.

• 16:00 Lap 47

  Lewis Hamilton sets the fastest lap of the race so far - 1:43.469.

• 16:01 Lap 48

  Vettel fastest lap this time round, they are both really pushing.

• 16:02 Lap 48

  Kimi Räikkönen has come into the pits again, and it's race over (again) for him too.

• 16:04 Lap 49

  The tension is high. Ricciardo leading. Can Stroll take second? What of Hamilton and Vettel?

• 16:04 Lap 50

  Two laps to go.

• 16:05 Lap 50

  Hamilton just dips into the DRS range behind Vettel.

• 16:05 Lap 51

  Passing the backmarker of Romain Grosjean doesn't hold anyone up but is an obstacle everyone could do without.

• 16:06 Lap 51

  Final lap.

• 16:07

  Daniel Ricciardo wins the Azerbaijan Grand Prix!

• 16:08

  Bottas pulled alongside Stroll and overtook him for second place AT THE FLAG. Amazing.

• 16:08

  Still amazing for Williams but my word that was close.

• 16:08

  Vettel fourth and Hamilton fifth.

• 16:09

  Team radio from Lance Stroll: "Oh no, he got me!"

  "Unlucky. P3, P3, mega job."

• 16:10

  Race Winner

  Driver	D Ricciardo
  Team	Red Bull
  Race time	2:03:55.570
  Race distance	306.049km
  Average speed	148.176km/h

• 16:10

  FERNANDO ALONSO FINISHED IN THE POINTS.

• 16:11

  Driver Positions

  Pos		Driver	Stops
  1	9	D Ricciardo	4
  2	0	V Bottas	4
  3	5	L Stroll	3
  4	0	S Vettel	4
  5	-4	L Hamilton	4
  6	1	E Ocon	4
  7	5	K Magnussen	3
  8	7	C Sainz	3
  9	10	F Alonso	3
  10	4	P Wehrlein	5

• 16:12

  Tweet from @virtualstatman: Remember I said Vettel's never won from outside the top-3 on the grid? ALL of Ricciardo's F1 wins have been from outside the top-3!

• 16:13

  Daniel Ricciardo can't do much but laugh over the radio on the cool down lap, a crazy race ending in victory for him from tenth on the grid.

• 16:13

  As the guys get out of their car, there's plenty of congratulations for Lance Stroll.

• 16:14

  Tweet from @nico_rosberg: F1.Awesome!

• 16:16

  Anyone else exhausted? What a race that was, from a first lap collision, to multiple safety cars, red flag period, and final fight to the flag. And what a podium!

• 16:17

  Stroll takes to the third step, big smiles. Bottas, also happy. Ricciardo beaming. Great to see guys enjoying themselves up there. I anticipate a shoey at some point, so I'll stop watching now!

• 16:20

  Championship Standings

  Pos	Driver	Pts
  1	S Vettel	153
  2	L Hamilton	139
  3	V Bottas	111
  4	D Ricciardo	92
  5	K Räikkönen	73

• 16:21

  Championship Standings

  Pos	Team	Pts
  1	Mercedes	250
  2	Ferrari	226
  3	Red Bull	137
  4	Force India	79
  5	Williams	37

• 16:22

  Plenty to think about following that race. Red Bull will have picked up some motivation here, except poor Max Verstappen won't be happy with his equipment that keeps giving up. Williams also will have a huge boost, although they still have some way to go to catch Force India.

• 16:22

  Incredible scenes between Hamilton and Vettel today. Their rivalry may have been friendly up until now, but I doubt it will be going forward.

• 16:23

  And super glad to see Alonso picking up points for McLaren. It's too little too late, really, but it's something, and it shakes that monkey off his back for now.

• 16:24

  Räikkönen probably won't be too happy with Valtteri Bottas either, another first lap crash between the pair. And what kind of conversations will be going on between the teammates at Force India?

• 16:24

  We've got two weeks now before the Austrian race, a home event of sorts for the Red Bull crew. I'm already looking forward to it, see you then!