George Russell managed to fend off Max Verstappen in a nail‑biting conclusion to the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, crossing the line just 0.1 seconds ahead of the Red Bull driver. The Mercedes driver had seemed set for a comfortable win after building an 11‑second gap, but two safety‑car periods erased his advantage and forced him into a fierce defence in the final laps.
The lights‑to‑flag victory narrows Russell's championship deficit to his teammate Kimi Antonelli, who leads the standings, to 66 points. Antonelli recovered impressively from a 16th‑place start—forced by a qualifying crash—to finish fifth, keeping his title hopes alive. Isack Hadjar secured third place for Red Bull, marking the team's first double‑podium since the 2024 Chinese Grand Prix. Hadjar’s comeback was notable after missing three rounds due to a wrist injury.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc slipped from second early on to claim fourth, while his teammate Lewis Hamilton, lacking outright pace, finished where he started—in sixth place. A chaotic incident on the restart after the first safety car saw Lando Norris and Pierre Gasly eliminated when Alpine’s Franco Colapinto collided with them.
The chain reaction began with Williams driver Alex Albon crashing, prompting the safety‑car deployment. Colapinto later apologised, calling his move "a big mistake," while an irate Norris urged the FIA to consider bans for reckless actions, suggesting that some drivers "shouldn't be in Formula 1." With the result, Russell emerges as the only credible challenger to Antonelli’s lead.
Former champion Lewis Hamilton now sits 103 points behind, and Lando Norris trails by 116 points, with eight races remaining in the season. Mercedes also edged closer to a constructors' championship, extending its lead over Ferrari to 160 points, their best position since clinching the title in 2021. The multi‑car crash opened the door for other midfield teams.
Arvid Lindblad moved up to seventh after passing Haas driver Esteban Ocon on the final lap, and Oliver Bearman followed closely to secure a double‑points finish for Haas. Carlos Sainz earned the final point for Williams, overcoming a five‑place grid penalty and a time‑loss pit stop before the first safety car, unlike most of the field. Aston Martin endured a disappointing weekend as both Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll retired with technical failures, leaving the team without points.
The race order, in summary, was: 1. George Russell (Mercedes) 2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 3. Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) 4.
Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 5. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 6. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) 7. Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) 8.
Esteban Ocon (Haas) 9. Oliver Bearman (Haas) 10. Carlos Sainz (Williams) Russell had dominated qualifying, taking pole by nearly a full second on Friday, and he converted that into a strong start, retaining the lead while teammate Oscar Piastri slipped past Leclerc.
Verstappen surged from eighth on the grid to third within seven laps, but Piastri’s defensive driving allowed Russell to extend his lead to 11 seconds before Alex Albon’s crash brought out the first safety car on lap 31. During the safety‑car period the field pitted, and a brief restart on lap 36 saw Russell manage the rolling start effectively. Verstappen passed Piastri, and soon after Colapinto locked his brakes, sliding into Gasly, who was then forced into Norris’s path.
The incident left Russell with a fast‑moving Verstappen on his tail as the race resumed with 13 laps remaining. A second well‑executed restart kept Russell ahead, but he could not shake Verstappen, leading to a tense showdown. As the final lap began, a crash involving Valtteri Bottas’s Cadillac triggered yellow flags, forcing Russell to lift off power. When the green flag returned, his turbo was offline, leaving him powerless just as Verstappen closed in.
The Dutch driver narrowed the gap to 0.196 seconds at the finish line. The margin of 0.1 seconds is the smallest race‑winning gap since Rubens Barrichello edged Michael Schumacher by 0.011 seconds at the 2022 United States Grand Prix, a race that Ferrari staged‑managed to the finish.
After the race, Russell reflected: "The first half of the race felt pretty straightforward, building the gap. The safety‑car restart with Max behind made me realise it wouldn't be easy, and he drove incredibly at the end. When the yellow flag came out for Bottas's crash, I lifted off the power, and when I went back I had no turbo, so I had no power and Max almost got me at the line.
It would have been a real shame, but overall it was an incredible weekend." Missing out on the win would have been a harsh blow after what was his most complete weekend since the season‑opening Australian Grand Prix. Russell still faces a daunting task to catch Antonelli, especially as he will incur a grid penalty for a new engine later in the year, but the victory provides a massive confidence boost after being outshone by his teammate for much of the season.
The triumph also levels Russell with Antonelli on eight career wins, after the Italian had overtaken him in Madrid. "It's amazing to be back on the top step of the podium," Russell said.
"I want to thank the team for believing in me through the tough moments and helping me get through it. I'm really proud of this weekend." Antonelli, meanwhile, struggled on Baku’s unforgiving streets after clipping a barrier in qualifying. The 20‑year‑old had previously fought back from 19th on the grid to win at Monza earlier in the month, but this weekend he could not repeat that feat.
He dropped from 16th to 15th on the opening lap and took 17 laps to climb back into the top ten. A series of fortunate events—Norris locking up and falling back, Albon’s crash, and Gasly’s elimination—allowed him to finish just under four tenths behind Leclerc in fourth place. "Today is one of those days where you have to be happy with P5," Antonelli told Sky Sports F1.
"It wasn't an easy race, and I was always a step behind, especially after missing half of FP2." Despite the setback, Antonelli remains the favorite for the title and looks forward to the rescheduled Bahrain Grand Prix, now taking place in Malaysia due to the ongoing Middle‑East conflict. "It's exciting," he added.
"George had an incredible weekend, he drove with a lot of confidence. This weekend was my worst of the year in terms of performance. I wasn't there, I wasn't really present, especially after what happened early on.
I just didn't take the same risks, especially after qualifying. Today was more damage‑save mode, instead of full‑attack." Formula 1 will head to Malaysia for the first time since 2017, hosting the Bahrain Grand Prix at the Sepang International Circuit. Live coverage begins Friday morning on Sky Sports F1, with streaming available via NOW without a contract.