Red Bull's Verstappen wins 2022 Canadian GP amid battle with Ferrari's Sainz

MANILA: Red Bull's Max Verstappen extended his lead at the top of the drivers’ standings to 46 points after winning the 2022 Formula 1  Canadian Grand Prix last Sunday.

Verstappen battled with his former Toro Rosso teammate and now-Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz, who finished second, for pole position through “proper racing," as Verstappen described.  

After claiming pole on qualifying with a lead on Sainz, Verstappen was looking set for a relatively stress-free 2022 Canadian GP. 

But after Verstappen dropped behind the Spaniard following a second stop, Alpha Tauri's Yuki Tsunoda then crashed into the Turn 2 barriers and prompted the release of the safety car, which allowed Sainz to pit and close up behind Verstappen. The pair then fought a 16-lap battle to the flag as green-flag racing resumed, with Verstappen holding on to win by just 0.993 seconds.

“It was a tough race,” Verstappen said. “I expected to have a little bit more pace, but we seemed to lack a little bit compared to Carlos… It was a bit more difficult than I expected.

“At that second stop, of course I had the fresher tires and I was closing in on Carlos, but I wasn’t sure if I’d actually fully close that gap to the end of the race.

Asked what the key had been to keeping Sainz at bay, Verstappen replied: “Well, of course you always had to make sure that the places where he had DRS, you have a good exit the corner before. But it was all about just really pushing to the limit, not making a mistake in general, because I knew even in Sector 1, if I made a tiny mistake Carlos would gain a tenth on me and that might have been enough to then be closer in the first DRS zone and then in the second.

With his pole at the 2022 Canadian Grand Prix, Verstappen has won five of the last six races of the 2022 F1 season. Following Sainz, seven-time World Champion and Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton took third place. 

Despite this win, the Dutchman said "it's a long way to go" for him and the 2022 championship title. 

Verstappen's Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez is still second in the drivers' standings, despite not finishing at the 2022 Canadian GP due to technical issues with his car. Title contender and Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc ranks third in the standings. 

At the 2022 Canadian GP, Leclerc started from the back row as a result of engine penalties, but he fought his way through the grid to finish P5. For this recovery drive, fans voted Leclerc as this GP's Driver of the Day. 

Photos from Formula 1

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