Charles Leclerc dedicated his third win of the FIA Formula 2 Championship season to his late father after another sterling drive around the Baku Street Circuit during Saturday’s Feature race.
The Prema Racing driver started from pole position and survived two Safety Car periods and a Virtual Safety Car to lead into the final stages, before a red flag was brought out thanks to Sean Gelael’s turn eight track-blocking crash gave Leclerc the victory.
Leclerc admitted to being worried about the potential pace of Nyck de Vries behind him, but the Ferrari Driver Academy star was able to edge away from the McLaren F1 Team Junior, and was 3.469 seconds clear when the race was declared as a result.
“I’m very, very happy, it is a great win that also brings us good points for the championship,” said Leclerc. “I said it many times but I could never thank my father enough for what he did for me and I dedicate this win to him.
“Regarding the race I didn’t know if De Vries was keeping his tyres for the end or pushing so I didn’t know what to expect and I tried to push as much as possible while still managing my tyres.
“In the end it was a little bit harder to make the gap and, but eventually we made it.”
