Formula 1: Max Verstappen snatches Imola sprint win from Leclerc
Apr 24, 2022
Imola [Italy], April 24 : Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen passed 2022 Championship leader Charles Leclerc at the start of the penultimate lap of a thrilling sprint in Imola to take victory, eight points and pole position for Sunday's Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
Sergio Perez finished third ahead of Carlos Sainz after both drivers recovered from difficult Friday qualifying sessions.
Lando Norris dropped to P5 for McLaren, Ferrari's Carlos Sainz up six places having crashed out of Q2, which caused him to start 10th on Saturday. Sainz claimed P4 off the McLaren with just two laps remaining.
That left Daniel Ricciardo sixth, where he started, ahead of a fast-moving Alfa Romeo of Valtteri Bottas, who took P7 off medium-tyred Haas driver Kevin Magnussen late in the Sprint.
Magnussen held on for the final point, finishing ahead of Alpine's Fernando Alonso in P9 - who started fifth but couldn't contend with his rivals' pace on the softs - and the other Haas of Mick Schumacher, who took P10 on mediums.
George Russell recovered back to 11th having lost places at the start, finishing ahead of AlphaTauri's Yuki Tsunoda and the Aston Martin of Sebastian Vettel - who gradually fell out of the top 10 and into 13th by the flag.
Lewis Hamilton started 13th and finished 14th in another tough showing for the Silver Arrows. Lance Stroll rounded out the top 15 for Aston Martin, having started P15 for the Sprint.
