Yuki Tsunoda looked set to finish in the top 10 at the Formula One Azerbaijan Grand Prix, but a bizarre ‘incident’ meant the Japanese would end the race in 13th place and his car ‘fixed’ with duct tape Will go
Tsunada’s AT03 suffered a broken back wing in the middle, with the stewards issuing a black and yellow flag to the AlphaTauri driver, implying that the racer had to face the pits with ‘mechanical issues or loose body work’. Had to return to the U.S. and he could finish his race all the way.
Alphatauri’s solution was to first tell Tsunoda not to use the DRS during the rest of the race, but the stewards called for ‘action’. In response, engineers decided to ‘fix’ the problem with duct tape and Tsunada continued to race.
“Let me tell you that, Joe Bauer from the FIA has come rolling down the pitlane. Joe Bauer, unfortunately, got here about five seconds too late and the car had already slammed. Particularly happy,” Karun Chandok reported on Sky Play F1.
Fans on social media scoffed at the idea of duct tape being used to ‘fix’ an F1 car:
— out of context F1 Baby (@f1nocontext) 12 June 2022
— out of context F1 Baby (@f1nocontext) 12 June 2022
Alpha Tauri said: pic.twitter.com/F22qcUSnVI
— F1 Reaction Pictures (@FormulaReaction) 12 June 2022
back wing of tsunada #AzerbaijanGP #wtf1 pic.twitter.com/XpVYarKZQD
— wtf1 (@wtf1official) 12 June 2022
f1: we are the pinnacle of motorsport
f1 also: uses duck tape mid res to fix the rear wing
— mathilde (@adehilmt) 12 June 2022
Alpha Tauri Mechanics: pic.twitter.com/IdUROX4CdN
— elliott horwood #44 (@elliothorwood f1) 12 June 2022
To race, Max Verstappen took full advantage of an engine failure for Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc to win the Azerbaijan GP on Sunday and open a commanding lead in the world championship.
The Dutchman passed 20.8 seconds ahead of Sergio Pérez, who ordered Verstappen not to fight, completing a one-two for Red Bull after race leader Leclerc pulled into the pits with a smoking engine on the 20th lap.
George Russell finished third for Mercedes and his teammate Lewis Hamilton was voted “Driver of the Day” after battling back pain, finishing fourth.
Pole-seater Leclerc’s retirement was his second in three races and was part of a double-DNF (not finished) for Ferrari, after teammate Carlos Sainz had already stopped with a hydraulic failure.
This dropped Leclerc to third in the overall standings, 34 points behind Verstappen. Perez, the winner in Baku last year, is second after Verstappen’s lead was ousted, 21 points behind his teammate after scoring the points for the fastest lap.
(with inputs from agencies)
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