GEORGE RUSSELL HOLDS OFF VERSTAPPEN TO WIN A DRAMATIC BAKU GRAND PRIX
George Russell won the Azerbaijan Grand Prix after a dramatic final part of the race in Baku. The Mercedes driver started from pole and controlled the opening stages, but two Safety Car periods brought Max Verstappen back into the fight for victory. Russell eventually crossed the finish line just 0.196 seconds ahead of the Red Bull driver.
Verstappen finished second after starting only eighth. The Dutchman had suffered several power unit problems during qualifying, but Red Bull changed several components before the race without giving him a grid penalty. His recovery through the field was one of the main stories of the race.
Isack Hadjar completed the podium in third place on his return from a wrist injury. The Frenchman showed strong pace throughout the race and spent much of the opening stages ahead of Verstappen. Red Bull eventually used a team order to put Verstappen ahead, allowing the four-time world champion to attack Piastri and fight for second place.
At the start, Russell kept the lead while Oscar Piastri passed Charles Leclerc for second. Lando Norris stayed fourth, ahead of Hadjar and Lewis Hamilton. Antonelli, starting 16th after his qualifying crash, lost one position on the opening lap but then began a long recovery through the field.
Verstappen quickly moved forward. He passed Hamilton on the second lap and then followed Hadjar towards the front. The two Red Bulls then attacked Leclerc, with Hadjar passing the Ferrari at Turn 3 before Verstappen made the same move on the main straight.
Piastri managed to keep the Red Bulls behind him for several laps, but Verstappen eventually moved into second. The Red Bull pair had been using different tyre strategies, with Hadjar on the soft tyres and Verstappen on the mediums, leading to several radio discussions about their positions.
Russell continued to control the race at the front and built a significant advantage over the cars behind. The Mercedes driver also reported a small moment where he touched the wall, but the team confirmed that there was no damage to his car.
Behind the leaders, Antonelli continued his recovery. The Italian gained several positions as the race progressed, while Norris struggled for pace. The McLaren driver later locked up and went wide, losing further ground to Hamilton, Gasly and Antonelli.
The first major Safety Car came on Lap 30 after Alexander Albon crashed into the barriers. The neutralisation allowed the leaders to make their pit stops with a smaller time loss. Russell and Verstappen switched to soft tyres, while Piastri, Hadjar and the Ferraris went onto the medium compound.
At the restart, Verstappen immediately passed Piastri for second place. The race was then interrupted again after a major incident involving the two Alpine cars. Franco Colapinto locked his brakes into Turn 1 and hit Pierre Gasly, with Gasly then making contact with Norris. All three drivers retired from the race.
The second Safety Car gave Russell another restart to manage. The Mercedes driver again held first place, with Verstappen behind him and Piastri in third. However, Piastri’s race then changed completely.
The McLaren driver locked up at Turn 1 on the following lap and ran deep, dropping from the podium fight to the back of the field. Piastri eventually finished 14th, despite spending much of the first part of the race inside the top three.
With Piastri out of the fight, Verstappen was able to focus completely on Russell. The Red Bull stayed within a few tenths of the Mercedes during the final laps, putting pressure on Russell around the narrow streets of Baku.
Russell was also helped by Mercedes giving him more power when Verstappen began to close. However, the final lap still produced a major scare. A yellow flag caused by Valtteri Bottas meant Russell had to lift, and the Mercedes driver later explained that he temporarily lost turbo power. Verstappen closed rapidly and came close to passing him before the finish line.
Russell held on to win by just 0.196 seconds and secured his third victory of the 2026 season. The result was also his eighth career Formula 1 victory. Verstappen finished second, while Hadjar took his first podium since returning from injury.
Charles Leclerc finished fourth for Ferrari, ahead of Antonelli in fifth. The Italian completed an impressive recovery from 16th on the grid to score 10 points. Lewis Hamilton finished sixth, while Arvid Lindblad took seventh for Racing Bulls.
Esteban Ocon and Oliver Bearman gave Haas a double points finish in eighth and ninth, while Carlos Sainz completed the top 10 for Williams. Sainz had started 14th after receiving a five-place grid penalty for failing to slow sufficiently for yellow flags during qualifying.
The result also extended a difficult run for Ferrari, with Leclerc’s fourth place leaving the team without a podium in five consecutive races. McLaren, meanwhile, left Baku without points after both Norris and Piastri failed to finish inside the top 10.
Russell’s victory also allowed him to reduce Kimi Antonelli’s championship lead. The Mercedes drivers remain at the centre of the title fight as the 2026 season enters its final stages.
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