F1 Sprint Highlights | 2022 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix

It's lights out and away we go for the sprint and Charles Leclerc gets a very good start indeed. Verstappen's been caught napping maybe. Pérez, making ground early under Leclerc, takes the lead of the sprint. It's Leclerc with Magnussen almost on the grass. Verstappen second, then comes Norris. K-Mag going wheel-to-wheel with Daniel Ricciardo and onto the kerb. Carlos Sainz is trying to make up places. Looks like Pérez has got past Daniel Ricciardo as they file through Tamburello and onto the Vildorf chicane. Kevin Magnussen having a great old scrap there with Sergio Pérez and Lewis Hamilton getting bogged down a little bit and his teammate George Russell too, not making gains where they would want. Yeah, the initial getaway from Max, it just did not happen. And then you could see, it almost looked like he lost the sync shift because you could see his head moving. But crucially, he stayed in second place. But listen to the crowd as Leclerc took the lead. And already a yellow flag as someone's gone off the track. And I think it's Joe Guagnou in the Alfa Romeo. And there is Joe Guagnou. Looks like his sprint is over by the end of the first lap. On the way to Interpiratella we go. And there's Joe Guagnou on the outside, Gasly on the inside. And I did think this track was narrow and that rather proved it. Yeah, two came together. I'm not really sure where Zou thought Gasly could go. And with the safety car in and the green flags flying, we get racing once again. This is lap 5 of 21 for the sprint here in Imola this afternoon. And Max Verstappen a long way back by the time they put on the brakes into Tamburello. Magnussen looks a little bit closer to Lando Norris, who's in third. Then comes Sergio Perez, Dani Ricciardo getting all out of shape there. Fernando Alonso, and that should let Carlos Sainz through in the other Ferrari. But Sainz picking up the slipstream and then trying to make his way around Villeneuve. Can't quite force his way past. Sainz's got to love the run on the Alpine. The Ferrari's looking beautiful behind it. And had he had DRS, I think he'd be going forward. But of course he would, because he's in that Ferrari. And is he going to go the long way around? Alonso's not going to make it easy, but a fellow Spaniard, and I don't think he'll put up too much of a fight. There goes the DRS. One DRS zone here at Imola. And you can see the closing speed that Sergio Perez has got. It's a mighty closing speed for Sergio Perez. Long before they get to the chicane, Sergio Perez is ahead of Kevin Magnussen and up into fourth. To the DRS zone we go. We're following Kevin Magnussen. Following him, Ricciardo. Following him is Sainz. And ahead of those, Sergio Perez. Looks like he's got ahead of Lando Norris. And he has. Towards the chicane we go. Is Ricciardo going to go down the inside on Kevin Magnussen? He is! Beautiful move by Daniel Ricciardo. Puts his McLaren up into fifth. Huge differences for Red Bull. If both Red Bulls can finish second and third, of course what that does is a bit of protection tomorrow at the start to fight the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc. And of course the slipstream is so crucial heading down into the first braking zone after the start. Dark clouds still hovering over the track, but the Tifosi roaring on and giving heat to Carlos Sainz as he sets now after Kevin Magnussen who hasn't got DRS. Ricciardo's too far away. There goes Sainz, bouncing away, but he can put up with a porpoising as sixth place is his by the time they get to the Tamburello chicane. He's got DRS. You can see. There you go. And he's getting closer. He's getting closer. Ricciardo moves over to the right-hand side. But really, that was not a fight. Daniel Ricciardo was equipped to fully fight. Valtteri Bottas now on Fernando Alonso who's been given a black and white flag for weaving on the straight. He can't weave now because if he did, he'd weave straight into Valtteri Bottas. And they're going wheel-to-wheel down the straight here. Valtteri Bottas on the inside. Later on the brakes, Fernando Alonso has to concede the points. And Valtteri Bottas in the Alfa Romeo moves up into eighth place. Three laps to go then as Leclerc sets off down that main straight. We're on board with Max Verstappen. Has he got enough distance to try and close in? No. Just runs out of straight at the end. Proper course now, Crofty. Is he going to get a nice run out of that? It's there or thereabouts. He wants to be left alone to do what he can do best. And what he can do very well is produce some overtakes from a long way back. Look at the bouncing on the Ferrari. The Red Bull's coming at him. Verstappen goes round the outside into the chicane. Stays on the track. Max Verstappen takes the lead at the sprint here at Imola. And we've had passes for the lead in a sprint for the first time. The first sprint of 2022. And I hope they're all like this. This is epic. Brilliant car control from Verstappen. And he didn't turn in, did he? He left enough space just to let him go. But beautifully judged at the second part of that as well. Max Verstappen lost out at the start here. Has made amends by the time he gets to the chequered flag. What a tussle with Charles Leclerc. The sprint has flashed by and it's ended with victory for Max Verstappen here at Imola. The championship leader, Charles Leclerc, comes home in second. Sergio Perez completes the podium places and takes third for Red Bull, who now go into second in the Constructors' Championship. Rather get the feeling the drivers like these sprints and like to be involved in such a short burst of fevered activity.