F1 Virtual Grand Prix: George Russell fights off Alex Albon to clinch hat-trick of wins in Baku race

Hat-trick: George Russell celebrated a third consecutive win in F1's esports series.
Formula 1/YouTube
Joe Krishnan7 June 2020

George Russell continued his run of Virtual Grand Prix victories as he triumphed over the Baku City Circuit on Sunday.

The Williams driver, who had already won the Spanish and Monaco virtual races, made it three wins on the bounce by winning from pole three seconds ahead of closest rival Alex Albon.

Esteban Gutierrez came in to claim third spot ahead of McLaren's Lando Norris, who shrugged off recent technical glitches to finish fourth - his best return so far.

Former series leader Charles Leclerc endured a miserable day, having been involved in a pile-up at the first corner which dropped him down the order and saw him eventually limp home in 14th place.

The final race of the Virtual season takes place on the virtual Montreal circuit next Sunday, where another strong performance from Russell will claim him the title.

Laporte joined the grid for the Virtual Grand Prix on the virtual Baku circuit  Photo: Getty Images
Getty Images

There were eight F1 drivers on the grid for the race - the most this season - as Pierre Gasly and Sergio Perez jumped into the virtual cockpit for the action.

Manchester City star Aymeric Laporte made his debut in the race and he was joined by fellow footballers Gianluigi Donnarumma and Thibaut Courtois.

The Formula 1 season is due to restart in Austria on July 5 after the start of the 2020 campaign was delayed due to the coronavirus.

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