The 2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix is in the books and although there was some chaos in the race itself, the ASN driver standings remained relatively stable.
Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton won the race, but it was as a result of early Christmas gifts from his teammate, Valtteri Bottas, Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel and both Red Bull drivers [Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen] and even a little from Haas’ Romain Grosjean. Therefore, ASN awards top points to Force India’s Sergio Perez for his third place podium finish amongst all the carnage. Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen receives the second-place points for his second-place finish despite an early altercation with Force India’s Esteban Ocon which could have knocked him out. The third and final point goes to Hamilton for his lucky win. Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel – who finished fourth – continues to lead the 2018 ASN Formula One driver standings.
The Pastor Maldonado Driving School is on the verge of being renamed the Max Verstappen Driving School Award as Verstappen almost took home another full point this week after he was involved in a crash with his Red Bull teammate Ricciardo that took both of them out of the race. After blame for the incident was assessed, ASN decided to divide the point into thirds with a third going to Verstappen, a third going to Ricciardo and a third going to Red Bull team management for failing to prevent their two drivers from crashing into each other during a race. Verstappen, of course, continues to hold a commanding lead in the category.
The Kimi Raikkonen “Leave Me Alone! I Know What I’m Doing!” Award this week is given to Bottas for his post-race response after he was asked how he would get over possibly winning the race only to have on-track debris puncture his tire in the last few laps – “10 pints of beer.”
The Bernie Ecclestone Doofus Moment Award is another split-up of points – this time between the Azerbaijan Grand Prix cleanup crew who missed the debris that punctured Bottas’ tire and robbed him of a potential victory and current category leader Hamilton who complained [or “whinged” as they like to say in the UK] afterward about Vettel’s driving during safety car processions – despite winning the race by pure luck! A genuine doofus moment.
The 2018 ASN Formula One Driver Standings [after 2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix]
1] Sebastian Vettel – six points
2] Lewis Hamilton – four
3] Sergio Perez/Kimi Raikkonen/Daniel Ricciardo – three
6] Pierre Gasly/Nico Hulkenberg – two
8] Valtteri Bottas – one
The 2018 Pastor Maldonado Driving School Award [after 2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix]
1] Max Verstappen – 3-1/3 points
2] Red Bull/Ricciardo – 1/3 point
The 2018 Kimi Raikkonen “Leave Me Alone! I Know What I’m Doing! Award [after 2018 Grand Prix]
1] Bottas/Hamilton/Verstappen/Vettel – one point
The 2018 Bernie Ecclestone Doofus Moment Award [after 2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix]
1] Hamilton – 1.5 points
2] Ferrari pit [Raikkonen] – one
3] Azerbaijan Grand Prix cleanup crew – .5 point