Valtteri Bottas withstood the challenge from teammate Lewis Hamilton to claim victory at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
The Finn went side-by-side with the world champion through the first two corners but would stay ahead to maintain track position throughout.
Charles Leclerc put in a brilliant first 10 laps to come through the field having started eighth after his crash in qualifying.
In fact, the Monegasque would lead throughout the main portion of the race after starting on the more durable mediums, but wouldn’t have the pace after switching to the soft tyres to come back at the leaders.
In what was a rare subdued race in Baku, only an apparent engine issue for Pierre Gasly would cause a Virtual Safety Car period soon after Leclerc has pitted.
That cleared the way for the Mercedes pair to duel to the end with Hamilton getting within DRS range on a couple of occasions, but never close enough to attempt an overtake.
Sebastian Vettel had a lonely race in third as Ferrari didn’t have the pace to challenge the Silver Arrows, with Max Verstappen a strong fourth for Red Bull.
Leclerc would stop for a second time for new softs to post the fastest lap in the closing laps after Gasly’s retirement confirmed his fifth place, having looked set for much better after his early pace.
In the midfield, Sergio Perez may not have had the craziness to get near the podium but the Mexican remained ‘best of the rest’ in sixth for Racing Point.
He would lead the two McLaren’s of Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris, as the British team managed their first double points finish since the same race 12 months ago.
A good start allowed Lance Stroll to move up the field and join Perez in the points in ninth, his second points finish of the season.
Finally, a dramatic day for Kimi Raikkonen saw him excluded from qualifying after his front wing exceeded the permitted levels of flex in the FIA test…
But the Finn would come back through the field from the pit-lane to claim 10th for Alfa Romeo.
Down the order, there was disappointment at Toro Rosso as a strong weekend resulted in no points with Alex Albon a frustrating 11th.
Teammate Daniil Kvyat was involved in the only clash of the race with Daniel Ricciardo, as the Australian out-braked himself into Turn 3 forcing both to miss the corner.
Contact would only happen though when the Australian reversed into the side of the Russian’s car causing race-ending damage for both.
Both Renault and Haas also failed to score points as Williams again brought up the field at the back.
Full results from the race can be seen below:
