2025 Azerbaijan GP Qualifying: Max Verstappen Grabs Pole in Baku

Max Verstappen delivered under immense pressure to claim pole position for the 2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, denying Carlos Sainz what would have been a career-defining upset. The Red Bull driver’s 1:41.117 secured back-to-back poles, but the bigger story was the mayhem behind him: a record-breaking six red flags turned qualifying into one of the most dramatic sessions Formula 1 has ever seen, and it ended with championship leader Oscar Piastri crashing out.

The chaos began in Q1 when Williams’ Alex Albon brought out the first red flag after hitting the wall at Turn 1. He would ultimately line up 20th, while Esteban Ocon, Pierre Gasly, and Nico Hülkenberg all fell in the opening segment—Hülkenberg also hitting the barriers at Turn 4. Franco Colapinto’s Alpine crash at the same corner capped off Q1 and sealed his elimination in 16th.

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Q2 was no less punishing. Lewis Hamilton, who had shown pace in practice, faltered when it mattered most. Struggling to stitch together a clean lap in his Ferrari, he was eliminated in 12th, behind Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin. Gabriel Bortoleto and Lance Stroll secured 13th and 14th, while Haas rookie Ollie Bearman hit the wall on exit of Turn 2, causing another stoppage and leaving himself 15th without a time.

Then came the blockbuster Q3. With drops of rain falling and pressure mounting, Liam Lawson, Isack Hadjar, and Sainz all managed to put in banker laps. Leclerc, chasing his fifth straight pole in Baku, brushed the wall at Turn 15 and crashed, triggering yet another red flag that froze the order temporarily. When the session resumed, Norris and Verstappen were lighting up the sectors, but disaster struck for McLaren: Piastri lost control at Turn 3 and slammed the barrier, causing another stoppage with less than four minutes on the clock.

In the frantic final dash, grip was far from ideal. Verstappen rose to the occasion, putting in a stunning 1:41.117 to snatch pole by 0.478s from Sainz, who still delivered one of his finest qualifying performances to date for Williams. Lawson’s stellar run put him third, narrowly ahead of Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli and George Russell. Yuki Tsunoda slotted his Red Bull into sixth, while Norris could only manage seventh after a scrappy lap that squandered his opportunity to capitalise on Piastri’s misfortune. Hadjar took eighth, with the two crash victims—Piastri and Leclerc—rounding out the top 10.

For Verstappen, it was another demonstration of composure in chaos, reinforcing his status as a master of pressure situations. For McLaren, the narrative turned sour: Piastri’s crash not only left him starting in the midfield but also handed momentum to Verstappen in the 2025 F1 World Championship fight. With six red flags, multiple crashes, and surprise names at the sharp end of the grid, Sunday’s race on the streets of Baku promises to be as unpredictable as the qualifying that set it up.

2025 Azerbaijan GP Qualifying Results

2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix Qualifying, 20 September 2025

POS.	NO.	DRIVER	TEAM	Q1	Q2	Q3	LAPS
1	1	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	1:41.331	1:41.255	1:41.117	23
2	55	Carlos Sainz	Williams	1:42.635	1:41.675	1:41.595	23
3	30	Liam Lawson	Racing Bulls	1:42.257	1:41.537	1:41.707	26
4	12	Kimi Antonelli	Mercedes	1:42.247	1:41.464	1:41.717	21
5	63	George Russell	Mercedes	1:41.646	1:41.455	1:42.070	22
6	22	Yuki Tsunoda	Red Bull Racing	1:42.347	1:41.788	1:42.143	23
7	4	Lando Norris	McLaren	1:41.322	1:41.396	1:42.239	21
8	6	Isack Hadjar	Racing Bulls	1:41.656	1:41.647	1:42.372	25
9	81	Oscar Piastri	McLaren	1:41.839	1:41.414	DNF	18
10	16	Charles Leclerc	Ferrari	1:41.458	1:41.519	DNF	19
11	14	Fernando Alonso	Aston Martin	1:42.211	1:41.857		18
12	44	Lewis Hamilton	Ferrari	1:41.821	1:42.183		17
13	5	Gabriel Bortoleto	Kick Sauber	1:42.511	1:42.277		16
14	18	Lance Stroll	Aston Martin	1:42.101	1:43.061		16
15	87	Oliver Bearman	Haas	1:42.666	DNF		11
16	43	Franco Colapinto	Alpine	1:42.779			8
17	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Kick Sauber	1:42.916			8
18	10	Pierre Gasly	Alpine	1:43.139			8
19	23	Alexander Albon	Williams	1:43.778			4
DQ	31	Esteban Ocon*	Haas				0

Ocon Disqualified from Baku Qualifying After Rear Wing Breach

Haas saw Esteban Ocon’s qualifying effort for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix wiped from the record books, after the Frenchman’s car failed a key FIA technical check.

Ocon originally clocked in 18th, but during the mandatory post-session parc fermé inspections, FIA scrutineers discovered an illegal flex in his rear wing assembly. Specifically, the main plane of the wing was found to deflect beyond the 0.5mm threshold permitted under Article 3.15.17 of the technical regulations.

Summoned alongside his Haas team to the stewards at 19:45 local time, Ocon’s fate was effectively sealed once the breach was confirmed. The inevitable penalty—disqualification from qualifying—was duly handed down.

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  Ocon Disqualified from Azerbaijan Qualifying After Rear Wing Breach

That reshuffle nudged Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon up a spot each, now slotting into 18th and 19th on the provisional grid.

The stewards’ decision, laid out in detail, reads as follows:

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The Stewards’ Verdict on Ocon’s Disqualification

“The Stewards heard from the team representative of Car 31 and the Haas Head of Car Engineering, plus the FIA Technical Delegate and FIA Deputy Technical Delegate.

“The driver (Esteban Ocon) was excused from the hearing.

“The FIA representatives described the test procedure used and reported that the distance between the two sections of RV-RW-PROFILES and RV-RW-TIP inboard of Y=525 varied by more than the permitted 0.5mm (0.6mm on the left side and 0.825mm on the right side).

“The calibration of the measuring instrument was verified and valid. The team conceded that the test procedure, as outlined in the regulations, had been followed and explained that the discrepancy was a result of a problem with the production of the assembly of this specific part.

“The Stewards determine that the vehicle does not comply with the regulations and hence impose the usual penalty of disqualification from the Qualifying classifications.”

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2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix Starting Grid

The Grand Prix starting grid, with or without penalties, after the 2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix Qualifying session.

POS.	NO.	DRIVER	TEAM	TIME
1	1	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	1:41.117
2	55	Carlos Sainz	Williams	1:41.595
3	30	Liam Lawson	Racing Bulls	1:41.707
4	12	Kimi Antonelli	Mercedes	1:41.717
5	63	George Russell	Mercedes	1:42.070
6	22	Yuki Tsunoda	Red Bull Racing	1:42.143
7	4	Lando Norris	McLaren	1:42.239
8	6	Isack Hadjar	Racing Bulls	1:42.372
9	81	Oscar Piastri	McLaren
10	16	Charles Leclerc	Ferrari
11	14	Fernando Alonso	Aston Martin	1:41.857
12	44	Lewis Hamilton	Ferrari	1:42.183
13	5	Gabriel Bortoleto	Kick Sauber	1:42.277
14	18	Lance Stroll	Aston Martin	1:43.061
15	87	Oliver Bearman	Haas
16	43	Franco Colapinto	Alpine	1:42.779
17	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Kick Sauber	1:42.916
18	10	Pierre Gasly	Alpine	1:43.139
19	23	Alexander Albon	Williams	1:43.778
20	31	Esteban Ocon	Haas