Red Bull Formula 1 driver Alex Albon has claimed his maiden victory in this morning’s Formula 1 Virtual Grand Prix, edging home Ferrari star Charles Leclerc in a race-long dual around the Interlagos circuit in Brazil.
The start was punctuated by Stoffel Vandoorne colliding with Ferrari Enzo Fittipaldi and Williams driver George Russell. The current Mercedes development driver being speared into the outside wall and dropping to outside the top ten.
Up front it was Ablon who lead Leclerc and the Alfa Romeo of Antonio Giovinazzi.
As it was in Shanghai, both Albon and Leclerc built a healthy advantage over the challenging pack, extending a 7 second over a rejuvenated Russell.
The 36-lap race would mean every driver must pit for fresh tyres at least once, and it was Leclerc the first to ditch his Soft compound tyres to fit the Hard tyres on lap 13.
But crucially, Albon would extend his first stint until the 17th tour where he would opt for the faster-medium compound of rubber.
The subsequent pace advantage allowed Albon to build a lead over the Ferrari who all-but-ended his race when he picked up a three-second time penalty for track limits.
Albon took the chequered flag in a strong finish; redemption for losing out to Leclerc in Shanghai last round.
Leclerc’s penalty promoted Russell into second place, marking Russell’s strongest result in the championship thus far.
With damage being turned off, Vandoorne would recover from his woeful start to finish in fourth place ahead of his Mercedes teammate and fellow ex-F1 driver Esteban Gutierrez.
After a promising start to the race, Giovinazzi would retire when he collided with the Williams of Nicholas Latifi on the exit of the Descida do Lago.
Lando Norris had a difficult race after missing qualifying due to technical issues. The McLaren driver would pick up a drive-through penalty as well as a number of time-penalties for track extending, eventually being classified down in tenth.
| Pos | Driver | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alex Albon | Red Bull |
| 2 | George Russell | Williams |
| 3 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari |
| 4 | Stoffel Vandoorne | Mercedes |
| 5 | Esteban Gutierrez | Mercedes |
| 6 | Christian Lundgaard | Renault |
| 7 | Enzo Fittipaldi | Ferrari |
| 8 | Louis Deletraz | Haas |
| 9 | Nicholas Latifi | Williams |
| 10 | Lando Norris | McLaren |
| 11 | David Schumacher | Racing Point |
| 12 | Petter Solberg | Renault |
| 13 | Ben Stokes | Red Bull |
| 14 | Juan Manuel Correa | Alfa Romeo |
| 15 | Alessio Romagnoli | AplhaTauri |
| 16 | Jelly | McLaren |
| 17 | Stuart Broad | AlphaTauri |
| 18 | Jimmy Broadbent | Racing Point |
| 19 | Antonio Giovinazzi | Alfa Romeo |
| 20 | Pietro Fittipaldi | Haas |
Image: Red Bull