Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc has acknowledged that he is relieved to have won Sunday's Austrian Grand Prix.
Having failed to finish on the podium in five races, Leclerc was under pressure to get the better of Championship leader Max Verstappen at the Red Bull Ring.
With Verstappen starting on pole, the odds were not in his favour, but Leclerc was able to overtake the Dutchman as early as the 10th lap.
That move gave Ferrari the initiative with Carlos Sainz Jnr also showing superior pace to the Red Bull, and a situation arose where a one-two for Leclerc and Sainz looked a realistic possibility.
However, with 14 laps remaining, Sainz's engine blew up as he was seemingly about to overtake Verstappen, the Spaniard left in a race to get out of his car as it became engulfed in flames.
LAP 58/71
— Formula 1 (@F1) July 10, 2022
Drama. An engine failure for Sainz. He's out of the race.#AustrianGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/WDPKmvRxqm
After the restart, Leclerc was nursing a throttle problem as he attempted to defend his lead, but the finish line came to his aid as he posted a first win since the opening race in Australia.
Speaking after the race, Leclerc said: "It was a really good race, the pace was there and the end was incredibly difficult with the throttle problem, but we managed to make it stick until the end.
"Weirdly my problem was at the same time as Carlos, but I knew it was a pedal problem rather than an engine problem. I definitely needed that one. The last five races have been diffiuclt for me and the team and it is great to finally get one."
Leclerc has now moved to within 38 points of Verstappen in the Drivers' Standings, moving ahead of Sergio Perez who was an early retirement on the back of a collision with George Russell.
Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton - Russell's teammate - was the man to benefit from Sainz's retirement, securing third spot for the third race in succession.
However, the seven-time world champion remains in sixth position in the standings, as many as 61 points adrift of second-placed Leclerc.
Russell still finished in fourth spot, despite a five-second penalty during the early stages of the race, with Esteban Ocon and Mick Schumacher in fifth and sixth respectively.
Lando Norris, Kevin Magnussen, Daniel Riccardo and Fernando Alonso completed the top 10.
Darren Plant
