Calderon retires from Baku feature race with alternator problem.
After setting the 18th fastest time in a qualifying often disrupted by yellow flags, Calderon stalled on the formation lap and was forced to start from the pitlane.
This didn't ruin her chances though, as she moved up the standings and went up to 3rd when the round of pitstops begun for the other drivers. VSC was then deployed for Mick Schumacher spinning at the exit of turn 16.
The BWT Arden car #18, fitted with medium tyres, prolonged its first stint enough to make it to le lead of the race as Calderon kept lapping consistently without noticeable performance drop-off.
When the Safety car was deployed again on lap 18, Tatiana was in the perfect position to make the most out of the situation and capitalize on the alternate strategy. The Arden mechanics quickly prepared themselves for the pitstop, when Tatiana appeared on the TV feed, limping through the last corner and finally coming to a stop on her way to the pitlane.
"What happened?" - she was asked on the radio. The world feed never aired Tatiana's reply, as presumably an electrical failure switched everything off.
And it was indeed an alternator issue that ultimately robbed the Colombian from a strong finish in Azerbaijan. Like in Bahrain, the alternate strategy was going to pay off and despite being Calderon's first time on the Baku City Circuit streets, a point scoring finish was very much in sight.
Calderon will be back for some more action tomorrow morning for the FIA Formula 2 sprint race on the streets of Baku.
In her words:
“Sad not to finish the race as we were looking good for the end but that's racing sometimes. We will try hard to recover tomorrow. Still cool to lead the race for a while."
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