Russell cruises to Azerbaijan Virtual Grand Prix victory

George Russell has won the Azerbaijan Virtual Grand Prix, dominating the race from start to finish to take his third consecutive Virtual win.

The Williams driver led the field away from pole position and was forced to hold off Alexander Albon at the start, who started the race on the front row.

The duo, who have been present at the front of the virtual field in the last handful of races, pulled away from the pack in the opening laps, with Albon making his one and only pit stop on lap seven.

The Thai-British racer switched to the hard compound, however Russell opted for the medium tyre when he stopped one lap later.

Russell was then able to build a gap up to 4 and a half seconds which remained largely stable until the end of the race.

Esteban Gutierrez was third for Mercedes, leading home Lando Norris, who managed to contest the event without any technical gremlins intervening. 

Renault junior driver Oscar Piastri crossed the line in fifth, ahead of Pietro Fittipaldi - the two enjoyed a close wheel-to-wheel battle towards the end of the race, with the former coming out on top.

Nicholas Latifi was eighth, ahead of YouTube Benjamin Daly. Former grand prix driver Anthony Davidson was ninth, and picking up the final point on offer was YouTuber and sim racer Jimmy Broadbent. 

Pierre Gasly, who made his debut in the series, missed out on points after he crossed the line in 11th. Sergio Perez, who also took part in his first race saw the chequered flag in 15th.

Charles Leclerc, a frequent front-runner in the Virtual GP series, ran into trouble throughout hte race and could only manage 14th.