Max Verstappen thwarted George Russell’s bid for a flawless set of practice times, as Red Bull reignited its challenge to the Mercedes duo ahead of Friday’s qualifying at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The final practice session in Baku was marked by increasingly gusty winds that turned the already demanding street circuit into a true test of driver skill and car stability. Throughout the hour, several competitors lost control and briefly left the racing line, underscoring how the unpredictable breeze amplified the difficulty of navigating the narrow, wall‑flanked track.
On Thursday, when the weather was calmer, Mercedes had appeared to dominate, posting the quickest laps and setting the tone for the weekend. However, as the wind picked up on Friday, Verstappen began to extract more performance from his Red Bull on the soft compound tyres. His lap times steadily improved, culminating in a best lap of 1:43.922 that propelled him to the top of the session’s timing sheets, effectively displacing Russell from the leading spot.
Russell, who had come close to striking the barriers at Turn Seven after a straight‑line run‑off, finished just 0.099 seconds slower in second place. His near‑miss highlighted how even the most experienced drivers can be caught out by the sudden gusts that buffet the Baku circuit, especially in sections where the walls are unforgiving. Ferrari, which had trailed the front‑runners for most of the session, managed to sneak into the podium positions thanks to a late‑stage effort from Lewis Hamilton. The former Mercedes champion clocked a lap that placed him third, merely 0.111 seconds behind Verstappen.
Hamilton’s final‑lap performance was aided by a powerful tow from cars ahead on the long pit straight, granting him a brief boost in straight‑line speed that proved decisive in such a tightly contested environment. Both the aerodynamic tow and the wind will continue to play pivotal roles as the drivers line up for qualifying, which is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. and will be broadcast live on Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports Main Event.
Sky Sports F1 analyst David Croft remarked, “The weather has given us the prospect of an absolutely fascinating and dramatic qualifying session. These are not easy conditions out there by any stretch of the imagination.” Kimi Antonelli, who leads the championship by 81 points over Russell, posted the fourth‑fastest time, edging out Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who occupied the fifth spot. Both drivers experienced moments of off‑track excursions, illustrating how the wind and the tight confines of the circuit can catch even the most talented pilots off guard. Three weeks after his stunning pole‑position lap at the high‑speed Monza circuit, Pierre Gasly delivered a solid performance for Alpine, securing sixth place and outpacing the McLaren pair.
Despite McLaren’s introduction of a substantial aerodynamic upgrade for the Baku weekend, Lando Norris had already indicated after Thursday’s runs that the reigning world champions were unlikely to fight for pole, a prediction that held true as the team’s best time was roughly 0.8 seconds off the leading pace. Oscar Piastri managed to slot into seventh, ahead of Norris, while Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar, returning from a three‑race hiatus due to a wrist injury, found himself further down the order as he worked to regain full speed. Franco Colapinto recorded the tenth‑fastest time in the second Alpine, narrowly ahead of Carlos Sainz, who drove a heavily revised Williams that showed promising improvement on Friday morning as the team aimed to climb into the congested upper‑midfield battle. Lance Stroll’s session was cut short after he clipped the inside wall at Turn One, completing only nine laps before retiring to the run‑off area.
His incident served as another reminder of how unforgiving the Baku street layout can be when the wind throws the car off its intended line. The schedule for the remainder of the weekend includes a series of supporting events: the F2 Feature Race 1 at 11:10 a.m., the build‑up to Azerbaijan GP qualifying at 12:30 p.m., the qualifying session itself at 1 p.m., followed by Ted’s Qualifying Notebook at 3 p.m.
on Friday. Saturday’s program features the second F2 Feature Race at 7:55 a.m., a Grand Prix build‑up at 10:30 a.m., the main race at noon, a post‑race reaction segment at 2 p.m., and another edition of Ted’s Notebook at 3 p.m. All of these sessions will be streamed live on Sky Sports Main Event, with the option to watch via the NOW platform, which offers a contract‑free, cancel‑anytime subscription. The 2026 Formula 1 season continues to deliver high‑octane action, and the Azerbaijan Grand Prix promises to be a highlight as the series heads into a triple‑header weekend, with Baku’s demanding circuit providing a perfect backdrop for dramatic racing and strategic battles.