Max Verstappen topped a frantic ultimate observe on the Azerbaijan GP, snatching the quickest time late on to disclaim George Russell a clear sweep of observe periods. The Purple Bull driver edged out Mercedes by lower than a tenth forward of what guarantees to be a decent qualifying battle.
Yesterday, George Russell set the tempo on the Baku Metropolis Circuit, main a Mercedes 1-2 forward of teammate Kimi Antonelli in an action-packed FP2 for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
The chaotic, incident-filled session noticed Max Verstappen end third, whereas a wall strike from Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad and an influence unit failure for Haas’s Oliver Bearman triggered disruptions throughout the sphere.
Ultimate observe earlier than Qualifying on the Azerbaijan GP went inexperienced
Pierre Gasly kicked off ultimate observe by heading out onto a dusty Baku road circuit on medium tyres, clearing the racing line earlier than former teammate Esteban Ocon joined the motion.
Shortly after, Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz hit the monitor on mediums to guage a serious, light-weight chassis improve package deal for Williams.
In the meantime, Arvid Lindblad returned following his FP2 crash, becoming a member of RB teammate Liam Lawson, Oliver Bearman, and Valtteri Bottas on delicate compound rubber.
Early operating noticed McLaren cut up their technique, bringing Lando Norris straight again into the pits after a single out-lap on softs.
In the meantime, Charles Leclerc set the preliminary benchmark, logging a lap six tenths sooner than Lewis Hamilton to high the sheets.
Sturdy, inconsistent wind gusts sophisticated the Flip 1 braking zone as drivers caught their first style of the altering circumstances.
Purple Bull countered by becoming a skinnier rear wing to realize high velocity down the lengthy straight.
On medium tyres, Kimi Antonelli slotted into third behind Leclerc, with Mercedes teammate George Russell trailing in fourth.
Because the circuit rubbered in and grip ranges elevated, lap instances dropped drastically.
Hamilton surged to the highest of the standings with a 1m 45.093s, pulling two tenths away from Russell.
Max Verstappen moved into third, main Russell and Oscar Piastri.
Tough circumstances at Flip 2 brought about chaos late within the session, with heavy bumps and a late braking level resulting in bottoming out.
Hamilton locked up into the nook, whereas Verstappen ran vast into the run-off space.
Lance Stroll brought about extra disruption after clipping the wall and struggling a punctured tire, forcing the Aston Martin driver to park up on monitor reasonably than limp again to the storage.
Extra small interruptions and discovering the sting
George Russell made the preliminary operating on medium tyres, setting the tempo by a tenth and a half over Charles Leclerc’s soft-tyre benchmark, with Kimi Antonelli slotting into third and Lewis Hamilton fourth.
Motion briefly paused when marshals triggered a brief Digital Security Automobile to retrieve a tree department from the monitor.
The stoppage didn’t disrupt Mercedes, with each drivers staying out on double warm-up laps on delicate C5 rubber.
As soon as the session resumed, Russell instantly set a blistering 1m 44.177s, stretching a six-tenth benefit over teammate Antonelli.
Antonelli trimmed that hole to two-and-a-half tenths shortly after. McLaren additionally confirmed improved kind as Oscar Piastri edged nearer to Leclerc.
Max Verstappen then ignited the highest of the leaderboards, first leaping to second inside 0.141s of the lead, earlier than brushing the boundaries on a subsequent push lap to go quickest by 0.099s over Russell.
Behind him, Isack Hadjar navigated heavy visitors to carry eighth place.
Because the chequered flag fell, late enhancements reshuffled the decrease top-ten order.
Hamilton surged to 3rd, Pierre Gasly jumped to fifth, and Franco Colapinto secured tenth.
Nevertheless, Verstappen’s late effort stood on the high, denying Russell a clear sweep of the Azerbaijan GP observe periods.
READ MORE – F1 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix – FP3 Outcomes
