European Grand Prix: Nico Rosberg cruises to victory in Azerbaijan

New Delhi: Championship leader Nico Rosberg led from pole to claim his fifth win of the season in the inaugural European Grand Prix on the street circuit in Baku on Sunday.

With the victory, the German driver has increased his championship lead over Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton to 24 points.

The 30-year-old was followed across the line by the Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel with Force India`s Sergio Perez in third.

Triple world champion Hamilton, who started from 10th on the grid after Saturday`s horror show in qualifying, took fifth after a fighting drive in the late afternoon sunshine in Baku.

Another mulitple champion, Vettel took second place, 16.6 seconds behind Rosberg, Perez in third place after overtaking Kimi Raikkonen`s Ferrari on the last lap.