.png){kind=small}
Max Verstappen takes home the victory in Azerbaijan ahead of George Russell and the Williams of Carlos Sainz.
Radio of the day - Jumping the gun
We've been given a 5 second time penalty for jumping the start.
Fernando Alonso's race engineer relayed the message to the Spaniard reluctantly.
Yeah, copy. Yeah, I reacted to Piastri, sorry.
Fernando Alonso admitted that his reaction to the start was caused by Oscar Piastri's false start at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The Australian driver made a rare mistake, moving forward before the lights had actually gone out signaling the start of the race. Not only did this affect his race, but it had a chain reaction and ended up affecting the Aston Martin driver's start as well. Obviously, Alonso cannot blame Piastri for him false starting as well, but it just goes to show the reprecussions for when a driver does not follow the rules and regulations.
Honorable mentions
We should pit before he overtakes me.
Isack Hadjar pleaded with his Racing Bulls race engineer to make sure they were putting him in a good position to defend the Mercedes of Kimi Antonelli.
We are looking after you, don't worry. Status 1. Clean Lap. No Mistakes. We're looking after you.
Hadjar's race engineer reassured the young driver that they were doing everything in his best interest but that it's also up to him to find a good result and stay ahead of the Italian Mercedes driver.
Top three moments from the race
1. Piastri has nightmare start
Oscar Piastri had one of the worst starts of his career, at a time when it counted the most. The Australian driver jumped the gun on the start, moving forward before the lights were out. This caused him to stop in an effort to comply with the rules, resulting in him dropping to the very back of the grid. As one does, Piastri was trying to overcompensate for the mistake and make up ground immediately, which ultimately was the beginning of the end for him. Piastri went into the wall, crashing his McLaren and bringing out the yellow flag. This has massive implications for the championship fight as the next closest driver is his teammate, Lando Norris.
2. Norris has ANOTHER slow pit stop
Lando Norris cannot seem to catch a break in the pit stop department. The McLaren driver had a four second pit stop in Baku when it really counted for him to come out ahead of the middle of the pack. Norris started the race in P7 afte an average qualifying performance. In terms of the championship fight, it was crucial for Norris to have a good start and get ahead of his teammate, Oscar Piastri. With Piastri crashing in the early laps of the race, it opened up the possibility for Norris to chip away at the points discrepancy between the two of them, but the British driver's luck with pit stops has not been in his favor. Norris also had a slow stop in Italy where he ended up coming out behind Piastri, causing the team to call team orders and have them switch back in a very controversial display of strategy.
3. Sainz comes home in third
Carlos Sainz started the race in P2 behind Max Verstappen and ahead of Liam Lawson. Beyond all odds, the Williams driver did everything right today, defending against the Mercedes of Kimi Antonelli and coming home to secure his first podium for Williams. Sainz has had a rough last few races, not scoring points in the past 7 races since the 2025 Canadian Grand Prix. Sainz has shown his comittemnet and skill with the team but has had a series of unlucky events, so this result would have been very rewarding for not just him but also for the team. Sainz even went on to say on the radio that:
This is the best podium of my career.
Carlos Sainz held off the rest of the pack and was able to keep his nose clean in Baku, resulting in a P3 finish for the himself and the team.
Temperature check
Who rose above expectations? And who flopped? Here’s our temperature check for the Azerbaijan GP:
Sizzling - Carlos Sainz. From starting in P2 in a Williams to bringing home a podium finish for the team. Carlos Sainz was on it from the very start of the weekend to the very end. He fought hard against the Mercedes and was able to stay ahead of Antonelli to come and stand on the podium in Baku. After a series of unlucky results and pointless finishes, a third place finish is a result that will keep him and the team going.
Ice cold - Oscar Piastri. Piastri is not a driver that has bad days, he is consistently good and has had a 44 race point streak. That all ended with his performance in Baku. The McLaren driver crashed out in qualifying during the Q3 session, eliminating his ability to fight for pole position. This put him in P9 where his teammate, Lando Norris, was starting the race in P7. In the race, Piastri made a huge mistake, jumping the gun on the start and fallign back to P20 at the end of the grid. In an effort to make up for the mistake, Piastri was pushing hard and pushed past the limits to then put his car into the wall, taking him out of the race.
%20(1).webp)
.webp)
.webp)
