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2021 Formula 1 World Championship
Round 15
Russian Grand Prix
Sochi Autodrom
Sunday 26 September 2021
12:00
McLaren-Mercedes will look to carry their momentum into Round 15 of the 2021 Formula 1 World Championship, the Russian Grand Prix, which will be held at the Sochi Autodrom on the afternoon of Sunday 26 September.
The British team claimed a stunning 1-2 at the Italian Grand Prix at Monza earlier this month, with Daniel Ricciardo leading home teammate Lando Norris. It was McLaren’s first F1 race win since 2012 and pushed them into third place on the Constructors’ Championship standings, as they overtook rivals Ferrari.
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The victory was especially sweet for Ricciardo, who had been overshadowed by Norris throughout the season after struggling to adapt to new surroundings at McLaren-Mercedes (the Australian joined the team from Renault at the end of 2020).
“It's been the most challenging year I've had in a long time," Ricciardo, now an eight-time Grand Prix winner, admitted. "But it's also made me understand more about myself as a person, and as a competitor. How much it still means to me, how much I want it.
“The weekend was a bit of a product of that. Already on Friday night I had a chip on my shoulder. But this is crazy, to be the guy that gets the first win for the team in nine years is pretty special."
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Despite their brilliance at Monza, McLaren-Mercedes team chiefs Zak Brown and Andreas Seidl stressed that they need to keep their feet on the ground and keep working to improve the car: “The team is doing sensational work with sensational spirit as well, and it’s great to see that it’s step-by-step paying off,” said Seidl.
“At the same time, no reason to get carried away; it’s important to celebrate today but shouldn’t forget [at Zandvoort] we got destroyed. We still have a lot of work to do, but the direction is the right one.”
Brown added, “As [Seidl] says one win and last weekend wasn’t very good so I think we have to keep our feet on the ground. And one win at a time!”
Drivers’ Championship standings
1 – Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing-Honda, 226.5 points
2 – Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, 221.5 points
3 – Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes, 141
4 – Lando Norris, McLaren-Mercedes, 132
5 – Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing-Honda, 118
Constructors’ Championship standings
1 – Mercedes, 362.5 points
2 – Red Bull Racing-Honda, 344.5
3 – McLaren-Mercedes, 215
4 – Ferrari, 201.5
5 – Alpine-Renault, 95
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