George Russell scored his third victory of the 2026 Formula 1 season with a dominant pole-to-flag drive in the Mercedes, resisting the late challenge from Max Verstappen.
The Mercedes driver took pole by a big margin of eight tenths and confirmed the Silver Arrows’ dominance in race performance. George led either side of a pair of mid-race safety cars to score his first win since the Austrian Grand Prix while teammate Kimi Antonelli recovered to P5 from P16.
At the start, Russell made a good start to defend his lead on the short run towards Turn 1, with Oscar Piastri picking off second-starting Charles Leclerc.
Russell started on medium tyres with his rivals on softs, but tyre degradation was not much of a factor on the low-impact street circuit, reducing race strategy to a simple one-stopper.
George quickly broke free of the pack while Oscar and teammate Lando Norris, who had passed Isack Hadjar four fourth, immediately came under pressure from the Red Bulls. Hadjar and Max Verstappen appeared stronger on the straights than the Mercedes-powered papaya cars, who were struggling for traction out of Turn 16, the corner leading onto Baku’s long 2km straight.
After Verstappen cleared Pierre Gasly, Lewis Hamilton, both he and Hadjar made their way past Norris and put pressure on second-placed Piastri, with Hadjar waving his teammate by. But as Verstappen started to go through a graining phase on his medium tyres, his challenge on Piastri was halted, making soft-tyre runner Hadjar impatient about having a go at the McLaren driver instead.
Just as Hadjar was given the green light to start challenging Verstappen, the race was interrupted by a safety car on lap 30 of 51 following a crash by Alex Albon. While holding off Esteban Ocon for a distant P13, the Williams driver locked up his tyres into Turn 5 and hit the TecPro barriers on exit, escaping without any harm.
With every frontrunner yet to make their one and only pitstop, the safety car led to a series of activity in the pits, with Russell retaining his lead from Piastri, Verstappen, Hadjar, Leclerc and Hamilton, while Norris dropped to ninth behind Gasly and Antonelli after going deep into Turn 1.
That mistake affected Norris as all pure chaos broke loose on the Lap 36 restart. While Verstappen picked off Piastri for second, Franco Colapinto locked up his tyres and went into Alpine teammate Gasly, taking Norris out with them as Antonelli narrowly escaped from the mayhem. In the background there was more intra-team contact as Arvid Lindblad punted Liam Lawson into a spin, with the Turn 1 chaos bringing out another safety car.
The entire top ten held station on a much more timid second restart on lap 39, with Russell leading from Verstappen, Piastri, Hadjar and Leclerc. But on the following lap there was more Baku drama for Piastri as he went deep into Turn 1 while defending against Hadjar, throwing away a potential podium finish.
Despite all the chaos, the double safety cars turned what should have been an easy drive for Russell into a nail-biting finish, defending against an aggressive four-time world champion.
But Russell held on in a drag race to the finish to hold off Verstappen, with Hadjar joining the pair on the podium on his return from his wrist injury. Leclerc finished fourth ahead of Antonelli.
As Antonelli predicted before the race, repeating his spectacular Monza comeback win was going to be difficult on the streets of Baku. The championship leader had made his way up to eighth by the time the race was yellow-flagged, and then benefitted from the Turn 1 chaos to overtake Hamilton for fifth position.
Lindblad crossed the finishing line in seventh, although there is an investigation into his contact with Lawson. The Haas duo of Esteban Ocon and Oliver Bearman finished eighth and ninth, with Carlos Sainz scoring a points in an upgraded Williams.
Both Aston Martin cars again were unable to make it to the finish after the team’s latest horror weekend, while Cadillac’s Valtteri Bottas ended the race in the wall on the final lap.
Thanks to his third win of the championship and first since Austria, Russell has gained back 15 points on Antonelli in the championship, now trailing his teammate by 66 points going into next weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix hosted by Malaysia.
Azerbaijan Grand Prix, race results:
1 George Russell Mercedes 1:38:02.143
2 Max Verstappen Red Bull-Ford +0.196s
3 Isack Hadjar Red Bull-Ford +10.704s
4 Charles Leclerc Ferrari +14.136s
5 Andrea Kimi Antonelli Mercedes +14.512s
6 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari +22.382s
7 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls-Ford +31.159s
8 Esteban Ocon Haas-Ferrari +31.189s
9 Oliver Bearman Haas-Ferrari +31.929s
10 Carlos Sainz Williams-Mercedes +32.416s
11 Nico Hulkenberg Audi +33.231s
12 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls-Ford +34.013s
13 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi +34.230s
14 Oscar Piastri McLaren-Mercedes +36.401s
15 Sergio Perez Cadillac-Ferrari +41.400s
Valtteri Bottas Cadillac-Ferrari DNF
Franco Colapinto Alpine-Mercedes DNF
Pierre Gasly Alpine-Mercedes DNF
Lando Norris McLaren-Mercedes DNF
Alexander Albon Williams-Mercedes DNF
Fernando Alonso Aston Martin-Honda DNF
Lance Stroll Aston Martin-Honda DNF
George Russell survived a late challenge from Max Verstappen to secure his third victory of the season in a dramatic Azerbaijan Grand Prix that saw six drivers retire, including McLaren’s Lando Norris.
The Mercedes driver built on a strong start to control the first half, leaving Oscar Piastri to defend against the charging Red Bull pair of Verstappen and Isack Hadjar while Russell extended his lead.
An error from Williams’ Alex Albon shook up the race as the Safety Car was deployed and the Briton battled to hold on at the restart, but the action was halted for a second time when Franco Colapinto locked up, taking out his Alpine team mate Pierre Gasly and Norris.
With the field neutralised again, Russell came under immense pressure from Verstappen on the final laps and ultimately crossed the line just one tenth ahead, denying the Dutchman what could’ve been his first win of the season.
Isack Hadjar was third to clinch a double podium for Red Bull, with Charles Leclerc and Kimi Antonelli taking P4 and P5 – the Italian made the most of the chaos in front to improve from P16 to the points.
Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton was a lonely sixth ahead of Arvid Lindblad, who beat Esteban Ocon to P7 over the line, Ollie Bearman and Carlos Sainz as Haas celebrated scoring for the first time since the Monaco Grand Prix.
Audi’s Nico Hulkenberg placed P11 after losing out to the lead Williams with two laps to go while Liam Lawson settled for P12, the New Zealander left frustrated following contact with his Racing Bulls team mate.
With P13 belonging to Gabriel Bortoleto, Oscar Piastri wound up P14 despite running in the podium positions for the majority of the race. A lock-up dropped him outside of the points and he led Cadillac’s Sergio Perez as the last of the finishers.
Valtteri Bottas drove into the barriers late on and was the final driver to DNF, joining Albon, Colapinto, Norris and Pierre Gasly. The Aston Martin duo of Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll also failed to finish due to separate mechanical issues.
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George Russell hailed an “incredible” weekend from start to finish in Azerbaijan, with the Mercedes driver topping Thursday practice, charging to a dominant pole and ultimately securing victory – cutting team mate Kimi Antonelli’s championship lead by 15 points in the process.
Russell headed into the event 81 points behind Antonelli, but trimmed that gap to 66 by edging out Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in a dash to the chequered flag, while the young Italian recovered from 16th to fifth after a dramatic Q1 accident.
It marks Russell’s first Grand Prix victory since Austria in June, and his third of the 2026 season so far, comparing to the eight Antonelli has achieved up to this point.
“It’s amazing to be back on the top step of the podium,” Russell commented post-race. “I just want to say a big thanks to my team, because they continued to believe in me through tough moments, helped me come through it. I’m really proud to have had this weekend.
“The first half of the race felt pretty plain sailing, getting the gap, the Safety Car restart… When I saw Max behind, I thought, ‘It’s not going to be easy’. He drove incredibly at the end of the race.
“When the yellow flag came out [for Valtteri Bottas’ crash], I lifted off the power, and when I went back, I had no turbo, so then I had no power. Max almost got me at the line, so that would have been a real shame. All in all, an incredible weekend.”
Asked about his confidence seemingly returning, Russell added: “I think it’s just having more experience with this sort of new driving style that I’ve adopted. Every race since the [summer] break I feel like I’ve gone from strength to strength. I feel like more myself again, so that’s really great.”
As for how he plans to approach the remaining rounds of the championship, in his quest to overhaul Antonelli, the Briton made his intentions clear.
“Win every race! That’s the game plan,” he stated with a smile. “My team mate’s had an incredible season, he’s been pretty flawless throughout, but now we’re getting to crunch time.
“I’m just going to focus on myself. If I continue delivering performances like I’ve done this weekend, no matter what happens towards the end of the season, I’ll be happy. It’s been a really tough period for me, and now I feel like I’ve come through the other side.”
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Reigning world champion Lando Norris says he thinks Franco Colapinto deserves “at least a one-race ban” for causing a pile-up at F1’s Azerbaijan GP.
On a lap 36 restart in the streets of Baku, Colapinto locked up his cold front tyres and aimlessly speared into Alpine team-mate Gasly into Turn 1, with Norris also collected by the tangling pair.
The incident knocked both Gasly and Norris out of the race, capping off a frustrating afternoon for the McLaren driver who lacked pace and made a Turn 1 mistake of his own that dropped him into the pack on the restart.
The restart clash left Norris furious, feeling Colapinto’s careless driving should be punished harshly by F1’s race stewards.
“I’ve not seen it. I just got taken out. I think the FIA should be stricter and start handing out bans for this kind of stuff,” Norris vented. “It’s careless from people. It costs a lot of money; all my parts are in the bin now. People should just get banned, because that’s not driving that deserves to be in Formula 1.
When asked if there were mitigating circumstances for what happened on the slippery Baku circuit, Norris added: “In Formula 1, I think you expect drivers to anticipate things. Grip is going to be low; tyre temps are low; they weren’t even that low. In Formula 1, we want to be against the best drivers in the world, and when stuff like this happens, it’s because [they] shouldn’t be there.
“I’ve not seen it, but if you cause a crash in a restart like this, you should have at least a one-race ban.”
https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/lando-norris-fia-should-hand-out-race-ban-for-franco-colapintos-baku-f1-crash/10859253/
Franco Colapinto has apologised to team mate Pierre Gasly and Alpine after the Argentine’s mistake on a Safety Car restart eliminated both cars from the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Alpine looked on course for a double points finish in Saturday’s 51-lap race on the streets of Baku, with Gasly running in P7 and Colapinto P10 as a Safety Car was deployed in the final third of proceedings following Alex Albon’s crash.
Heading into Turn 1 and with the field bunched together as racing resumed, Colapinto misjudged his braking and locked up, moving to the inside before swiping the side of Gasly’s car on the apex.
The pair spun to the outside of the circuit, collecting Lando Norris’ McLaren in the process, with all three drivers eliminated.
“Just bit of disappointment, for myself, for the team. Just a big sorry to all of them, to the factory, to Pierre of course,” said Colapinto when asked about the incident.
“[I] took him out, so really disappointed. We were both in a position to score points, was a big day for the team and [I] did a big mistake. Big sorry, it shouldn’t happen.
“I was locking up and completely out of control. Not a lot I could do. We move onto the next one and try to score points.”
Alpine had been on course to slash the nine-point gap to Racing Bulls for fifth in the teams’ standings, but instead have fallen six points further adrift as Arvid Lindblad finished seventh.
The F1 rookie also collided with team mate Liam Lawson at the same time as the Alpines, with that incident ultimately concluding with no further action from the stewards.
“I don’t think I really have words and I don’t need the words now,” said Gasly when asked to give his verdict on the incident with Colapinto.
“We’ll manage it together as a team. I’m obviously very disappointed for all the guys, P7 and P10 was a very good race, good pace. Honestly I have no idea how to answer your question. Got to move on.”
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Max Verstappen admits he “was trying everything” to claim victory on the streets of Baku, the Red Bull driver eventually falling short by just one tenth against George Russell.
The Dutchman was left a frustrated eighth on the grid for Saturday’s 51-lap race after issues in Qualifying, but Verstappen quickly began to make progress with the medium tyre.
Moving into third, Verstappen demoted Oscar Piastri’s McLaren for second at the first of two Safety car restarts, allowing him to challenge race leader Russell in the closing stages.
“Starting in P8 I knew it wasn’t going to be that straightforward but we worked our way quite nicely up into the top three but that first stint was very tricky,” said the four-time World Champion.
“That medium tyre was just not very good, not having the grip that I think the soft tyres had so was just trying to survive on that stint to try and stay with the guys on the soft.
“I think that Safety Car came at the right time for everyone to box onto that soft, because once we were on that soft tyre, it felt a lot better, just miles faster.
“I think that also showed once George and I were on the soft, we were pulling away quite a lot over everyone else.”
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/i-was-trying-everything-verstappen-gives-verdict-after-missing-out-on-azerbaijan-gp-victory.6M9zlnYYDH8w4AnRIninDX
Red Bull driver Isack Hadjar was all smiles after completing his comeback from a “very long six weeks” on the sidelines with a podium finish at the Baku City Circuit.
Hadjar missed events at Zandvoort, Monza and the all-new Madring track over the last month, having injured his wrist while training in the summer break.
However, the Frenchman got the green light to compete again in Azerbaijan, where he gradually built his speed throughout practice before qualifying fourth and racing his way to third place.
It marked Hadjar’s third podium in F1, but the first that he feels was earned “on pure pace”, given that he gained from Lando Norris’ retirement at the 2025 Dutch Grand Prix, while representing Racing Bulls, and from Pierre Gasly’s penalties in Monaco earlier this year.
Sharing his thoughts post-race, Hadjar beamed: “I’m happy. It’s been a very long six weeks. It’s been like six weeks since I enjoyed myself.
“I think it was the right time to come back. I felt strong. This weekend I really took it step by step. It’s a track where you can end up in the wall really quickly, and I didn’t need that, to gain the confidence. It was a very slow build-up, but it brought me here.
“I’m very, very happy for an actual first proper podium on pure pace. I’m very, very delighted.”
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Kimi Antonelli made clear that the Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend “taught me a lot” after enduring his “worst weekend of the season” on Baku’s streets.
Antonelli’s start to the weekend was hampered by technical problems in practice before he dramatically crashed out in the opening phase of Qualifying – leaving him down in 16th on the grid, with team mate George Russell on pole.
While Antonelli recovered to fifth position on race day, Russell’s pole-to-victory drive means the Italian’s championship lead has been cut from 81 points to 66.
Reflecting on his race, and the event as a whole, Antonelli said: “I think it’s one of those days where you have to be happy with P5. Obviously it was the worst weekend, by far, of the season.
“I was just… I felt always a step behind, and especially with the mistake in Qualifying, the confidence level was not high. In today’s race I just tried to… today was about damage limitation.
“I didn’t have strong pace, and also after [contact with Haas’ Ollie Bearman at] the Safety Car restart I was carrying big damage, big floor damage.
“It was not easy out there, but I just did my best.”
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/antonelli-vows-to-take-lessons-from-worst-weekend-of-the-season-in-azerbaijan.2gFddBKt9w2Zp3y6deTe5r