Verstappen takes pole position in Azerbaijan after qualifying with multiple crashes

Max Verstappen claimed pole position for the 2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix after a qualifying session that saw six red flags at the Baku street circuit. Verstappen beat Williams' Carlos Sainz by half a second, who came very close to securing his first pole of the season.

Six accidents brought the qualifying to a halt, with the most significant being Oscar Piastri's in Q3. Piastri, the current championship leader, hit the barrier at turn 3 while setting the best sector times and looking like the fastest driver of the day.

Verstappen capitalizes on changing conditions in the final minutes

When raindrops began to fall on the Baku asphalt, only Sainz, Liam Lawson, and Isack Hadjar had completed valid laps in Q3. Charles Leclerc had crashed at turn 15, causing a red flag that prevented the other competitors from completing their attempts.

When the session resumed, Verstappen and Lando Norris were setting the best sector times until Piastri lost control of his McLaren. With less than four minutes on the clock, Piastri's accident caused another interruption that left just enough time for one final lap.

Photo By Red Bull Content Pool

"Long qualifying, to be honest, with so many red flags," stated Verstappen after the session. "It was difficult to put your lap together because most of the time your tires weren't really ready, or a red flag would appear. Especially in Q3, with a bit of rain around... it was a very difficult session."

Lawson reaches third as Mercedes cars advance to Q3

RB's Lawson improved his time on his second attempt and held onto third position, followed by the Mercedes of Kimi Antonelli and George Russell. Yuki Tsunoda completed the top 6 with the second Red Bull Racing car.

Norris was unable to capitalize on his title rival's mistake and only qualified seventh, two positions ahead of Piastri, who kept ninth place despite not completing a lap in Q3. Norris struggled to find rhythm on his final attempts and grazed the barriers on several occasions.

Hamilton eliminated in Q2 due to pace issues

Lewis Hamilton had a difficult session and was eliminated in Q2, finishing in 12th position. Hamilton failed to put together a clean lap throughout the session and ended up behind the Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso, who was also knocked out in the second round.

Gabriel Bortoleto got his Kick Sauber into Q2 but could go no further, finishing 13th ahead of Lance Stroll. Haas team's Oliver Bearman finished 15th after hitting the barrier on the exit of turn 2, causing an early red flag in Q2.

Multiple incidents mark Q1 with three interruptions

The first session saw three red flags, starting with Alexander Albon's accident at turn 1. Albon hit the inside wall and damaged the suspension, being eliminated with 11 minutes remaining.

Alpine's Franco Colapinto caused the third interruption of Q1 by hitting the barrier at turn 4, the same spot where Nico Hulkenberg had had problems minutes earlier. Pierre Gasly also had issues in that zone, resulting in both Alpine drivers being eliminated.

Photo By Red Bull Content Pool

Ocon disqualified for technical failure on rear wing

Esteban Ocon received a disqualification from qualifying after his Haas failed post-session technical checks. The stewards determined that Ocon's rear wing exceeded the allowed deflection of 0.5mm, registering 0.6mm on the left side and 0.825mm on the right.

"The team admitted that the testing procedure described in the regulations had been followed and explained that the discrepancy was a result of an issue with the production of the assembly of this specific part," stated the stewards' report.

Full qualifying results