Daniel Ricciardo kept his head when others lost theirs to record his fifth career victory at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The Red Bull driver overcame an early unscheduled pit stop and cashed in on the misfortune of others to win an amazing race ahead of Mercedes GP's Valtteri Bottas and rookie Lance Stroll in the Williams. Title rivals Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton finished fourth and fifth but had an unsavoury clash behind the Safety Car which could have further recriminations as the 2017 season progresses.
Here is a round-up of a dramatic afternoon in Baku.
Hamilton vs. Vettel: Who was in the wrong?
The 2017 season has seen a wealth of mutual respect on-track between title rivals Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton. In Baku, we got the first signs of this explosive rivalry and it happened under Safety Car conditions. The clash occurred during the second of three quick periods of Safety Car formation and happened exiting turn 15 as racing was about to resume.
Hamilton cruised into the corner and caught Vettel out on the exit, who ran into the back of the Mercedes and lost part of his Ferrari front wing. Sebastian was furious. He felt he had been brake tested by the Brit. He gesticulated at Hamilton and as he pulled up alongside, drove into the side of his fellow championship challenger.
It was the kind of incident that hasn't been seen since the days of Pastor Maldonado.
The FIA decided Hamilton did nothing wrong but slapped Vettel with a 10-second stop-go penalty which wrecked his chances of winning. He also received three penalty points on his license, taking him to nine points in total and just three away from a race ban.
Both disagreed with each other about their actions. So who was in the wrong?
Hamilton took a chance and backed the field up heavily. He has every right to do so, he controls the speed as race leader. His onboard camera graphics clearly showed no application of the brake pedal. It simply caught Vettel out. However, incident two when Vettel used Hamilton's machine as a hitting ram was poor conduct from a four-time world champion.
His penalty was too lenient. It is a bad example to set to youngsters watching and he was lucky to escape with just a 10-second penalty. Whether Vettel drove into him deliberately, only he will know his intentions. Either way, it was a bitter and unsavoury moment.
It will get people talking though and that is what the promoters at every event between now and Abu Dhabi in November will want.
Ricciardo cashes in but more misery for Max
Despite that contact, the race was still Hamilton's to lose. He dominated qualifying and was cruising to victory, even after a red flag on lap 22 to clear up the track due to a number of incidents that left debris scattered across the circuit. Unfortunately for the three-time champion, his headrest worked loose and as it violated safety regulations, he had to make an unscheduled pitstop and get the equipment replaced.
That dropped him back ironically behind Vettel.
So that meant Ricciardo cashed in to take a fortunate victory. The pace of the Red Bull has improved in recent races and they looked like they had a race-winning package on Friday in practice. They underperformed in qualifying and Ricciardo pushed too hard, hit the wall and started from 10th. That became 17th early on when he had to pit to remove debris from his brake ducts which were overheating at a rapid rate. Once cleared, he could race and he climbed through the field well.
Though handed victory by the issues for Hamilton and Vettel, his double overtake on the two Williams cars once racing resumed was pure class from a driver who has made a series of wonderful overtakes in recent seasons.
He was there to pick up the pieces and considering his bad luck at some venues previously (Monaco last year as an example), he deserved to come home with the spoils.
Spare a thought for his teammate though. Max Verstappen was fastest in both Friday sessions, despite a late crash of his own he had a weekend beset by mechanical woes. Another engine failure in the race while running fourth means it is four retirements in six events for the luckless Dutchman. His "here we go again" soundbite on the team radio said it all. Seeing Ricciardo win will hurt too. This was a race that he would have been in serious contention for.
Super Stroll
After a tough baptism to his Grand Prix career, Lance Stroll has settled down in the last two events and was magnificent all weekend in Baku.
He didn't make any mistakes, out-qualified Felipe Massa for the first time in his career and stayed clear of the carnage around him. Even though he was pipped right on the line to second spot by former Williams pilot Bottas, Stroll still becomes one of the youngest drivers to ever stand on an F1 rostrum.
He showed a new level of maturity this weekend and his confidence which was at an all-time low after Barcelona is now going to be on cloud nine. His result is the first podium finish for a Canadian driver since Jacques Villeneuve at the 2001 German Grand Prix.
Massa's race was another hard luck story. He ran as high as third before a broken rear damper shortly after the restart made his car undrivable and he was forced to retire.
Williams though can be delighted with their weekend. At least their drivers had no incidents.
Foolish Force India
After their battle in Canada, the last thing Force India senior management wanted to see was for their drivers to hit each other. Unfortunately, Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon carried out the cardinal sin in the sport which is to collide with your own teammate. The incident came after the second Safety Car period and was a foolish moment because their cars were fourth and fifth and ahead of all three eventual podium finishers. The Silverstone-based team were on course for big points but for careless driving from both of their drivers.
There was also an unnecessary collision between the Sauber drivers on the weekend where their ex-team boss Monisha Kaltenborn had abruptly parted company and all trust and working co-operation between Toro Rosso teammates Carlos Sainz and Daniil Kvyat seems to have broken down completely.
Finally, some joy at last for McLaren and their beleaguered partnership with Honda. They might have copped grid penalties in excess of 85 places but both cars finished and Fernando Alonso wrestled his car around to finish ninth and get their first points of the season. More relief than a celebration, but at least they are off the mark for 2017.
Sometimes as the Guinness adverts once said: "Good things come to those who wait". Daniel Ricciardo waited for his opportunity and seized the day. Meanwhile, in the championship battle, the temperature has been cranked up and the Austrian Grand Prix in a fortnight's time will have some way to match up to the standards set in Azerbaijan. It was simply bonkers in Baku.
