F1 | Race | Azerbaijan GP | Verstappen leads from start to finish while Sainz secures his first podium for Williams - Motorsport

Spread the love

Round 17 of the 2025 F1 season took place in Azerbaijan. Saturday’s qualifying was nothing short of chaotic. Will the race be more of the same? See the full report and results below.

Max Verstappen starts on pole, followed by Carlos Sainz and Liam Lawson. Esteban Ocon will start from the back of the grid, following a disqualification from qualifying due to his rear wing failing a deflection test post-qualifying. Championship leader Oscar Piastri starts from P9 after he found the wall in Q3.

Before the race began, Isaac Hadjar experienced a hydraulic problem with his car while en route to the grid. It was all hands on deck for the Racing Bull’s mechanics, who were able to fix the car before the start of the race.

The wind continued to blow across the streets of Baku, and there were concerns about an incoming rainstorm beginning an hour into the race.

Disaster for Oscar Piastri

A great start from Max Verstappen allowed him to hold onto his lead going into Turn 1. Meanwhile, further back, Oscar Piastri dropped from P9 to P20 after a disastrous start, jumping the lights and hitting anti-stall. His day got even worse when he found the barriers at Turn 6 after locking up. This mistake brought out the safety car. Hulkenberg made contact with Ocon, but both were able to carry on with their race.

Hadjar got the jump on Norris, going up to P7. During the safety car, the pit lane got busy, and Albon and Ocon both came in for an early change of tyres, switching onto the mediums. Fernando Alonso was noted for a false start.

Safety car restart

The track was cleared, and the safety car came in at the end of Lap 4. Max Verstappen took control of the race and took the field racing again at the Azerbaijan GP. Leclerc overtook Norris on the restart, and Russel lost out to Tsunoda.

Alonso was given a five-second penalty, which he will serve during his first pitstop. Piastri received the same penalty, which he will have to serve during the next round.

Leclerc overtook Hadjar, moving up to P7. Norris and Hadjar were side by side into Turn 1, and Norris came out in front, moving up to P8. At the top of the field, the top four all ran in their starting order.

On Lap 8, Hamilton made the move on Hadjar and moved his Ferrari up to P9. Norris tried to make the move on Leclerc, who was able to hold his position and prevent the Brit from advancing up the field.

Settling into the race

Tsunoda’s straight-line speed allowed him to hold up Russell. But on Lap 10, Russell was able to get a better line through Turn 2 and execute the move, moving him up to P5. Their fight allowed Leclerc, Norris and Hamilton to catch the back of the Red Bull.

Colapinto worked his way up to P13 and began a DRS train back down to Ocon in P19. At the front, Verstappen began to pull away, creating a 3-second gap to Sainz in second place. Lawson continued to run in third, however was starting to experience some pressure from Antonelli in fourth.

Bearman overtook Gasly for P16, who was soon overtaken again by Albon, leaving Gasly down in P18. Stroll continued to try to battle with Colapinto, who was able to hold strong and defend well. On lap 16, Albon pitted for the second time, this time opting for a set of hard tyres.

Lewis Hamilton had a close call with the wall, where a lock up caused him to narrowly miss hitting the barriers.

Albon and Colapinto make contact

Colapinto came out of the pits and immediately made contact with Alex Albon, causing him to go spinning into the wall. Luckily, the Argentinian was able to get going again and continue on his way. Albon was deemed at fault for the incident and received a 10-second penalty.

On Lap 19, Antonelli came into the pits, which released his teammate, George Russell, to fight Lawson for P3. Leclerc followed him in on the next lap, hopeful to jump Tsunoda with the undercut. Lawson pitted on Lap 21 and was just able to come out in front of Antonelli. Despite his tyres being cold, he was able to stay ahead as the two rookies fought for position. But he couldn’t hold on for long, and Antonelli made the move stick going into Turn 1 on Lap 22.

Alonso pitted and served his penalty, which left him vulnerable to Albon at the back of the grid. Verstappen continued to lead the way with a 7.2-second lead on Sainz.

The half-way point

Halfway through the Azerbaijan GP, Antonelli made the move on Bortoleto, releasing him into free air and up into P8. Leclerc continued to gain on Lawson, closing in on every lap.

On Lap 28, Sainz pitted, swapping his medium tyres for a fresh set of hards. He came out 3 seconds ahead of Antonelli, allowing him to prevent the undercut from the Mercedes driver.

The top five were all still to pit. Verstappen lead Russell, followed by Tsunoda, Norris and Hamilton.

On lap 35, Ocon lost two positions, first to Bortoleto and shortly followed by Albon. On the following lap, Albon moved up to P13 after making a move on Hulkenberg.

The top five pits

Lewis Hamilton pitted on Lap 37, collecting a new set of medium tyres. Further down the field, Bortoleto moved up into P11. There was activity in the McLaren garage as they got ready to service Norris. But the stop was slow, taking 4.1 seconds to change the tyres on Norris’ McLaren. This allowed Leclerc to get ahead, and Norris came out in P8.

Tsunoda followed Norris into the pits on the next lap and came out just ahead of Lawson. But with cold tyres, Lawson was able to get the jump on Tsunoda, who quickly came under pressure from Leclerc.

Russell was in and out of the pits in 2.3 seconds and held onto his P2 spot ahead of Carlos Sainz. Verstappen was in on the next lap and held onto his lead with a 13-second gap to Russell.

Norris moved up to P7 after taking Leclerc on Lap 41. He then set his sights on Tsunoda, who was 1.3 seconds down the road.

The fight for P5

As the race began to close down, there were reports of light rain at Turn 16. Lawson and Tsunoda continued to fight for P5, with Norris gaining on the two drivers. Hamilton was on fresher tyres and swapped positions with Leclerc, allowing him to try and attack Norris down the road.

Carlos Sainz was able to put some distance between himself and Antonelli as he attempted to hold onto his podium position. The battle for P5 continued to heat up, but Lawson continued to hold on to his position, defending brilliantly from Tsunoda and Norris. His defence also allowed Hamilton to catch up and join the fight.

There was one last opportunity to move up the grid, as the final lap was underway. Norris was closer to Tsunoda, but was unable to make the move stick. Verstappen completed the grand slam and took the checkered flag, winning the F1 Azerbaijan GP. Russell brought home second and was joined on the podium by Sainz. There was no change in the battle behind, and Antonelli was followed over the line by Lawson in P5.