Perez fends off Leclerc to win Azerbaijan sprint

Red Bull's Sergio Perez won the first sprint race of the 2023 Formula 1 season, holding off pole-sitter Charles Leclerc at Baku City Circuit on Saturday.

Perez's teammate and reigning champion Max Verstappen rounded out the podium, crossing the line third.

The 17-lap sprint is the first run with the new format that involved a shootout earlier Saturday to decide the grid. The sprint race has no bearing on Sunday's Azerbaijan Grand Prix but still doles out points to the top-eight finishers.

Leclerc claimed pole for Sunday's Grand Prix during Friday's qualifying and also went the fastest during Saturday's shootout to secure the top starting spot for the sprint.

Mercedes' George Russell finished fourth in the sprint. Verstappen confronted Russell following the race regarding contact made on the opening lap that damaged the championship leader's sidepod.

"I don't understand why you need to take so much risk on Lap 1," Verstappen said during his postrace interview. "We still got into P3 and got some good points. It is what it is."

Russell rebutted, stating his shock at the confrontation.

"I was surprised he was so angry, to be honest," Russell said, according to The Race.

"If the roles were reversed, I'm sure he would have done exactly the same," the Brit added, per Sky Sports.

He continued: "I'm not going to hold back because he's leading the championship."

Williams' Logan Sargeant didn't enter the sprint after a crash in the shootout. Despite not having a teammate on the track, Alex Albon came tantalizingly close to finishing in the points but wound up ninth.