Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2026

Baku City Circuit · 2026-09-26 · Round 15 of 2026

George Russell controlled the Azerbaijan Grand Prix from pole position, holding off a charging Max Verstappen by just 0.196 seconds — one of the closest finishes in Baku's F1 history. Verstappen, who had started eighth on the grid, carved through the field all race to finish on Russell's gearbox. Isack Hadjar marked his return from a wrist injury with a strong third place for Red Bull, 10.7 seconds back. Kimi Antonelli recovered brilliantly from 16th on the grid to fifth, limiting the damage to his championship lead. Russell also set the fastest lap to complete a pole-win-fastest lap sweep. The Baku streets proved unforgiving: seven drivers retired including Lando Norris, Pierre Gasly and Fernando Alonso, while Carlos Sainz scored a valuable point in tenth for Williams.

Pos	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Status
1	George Russell †	Mercedes	51	1:38:02.143
2	Max Verstappen	Red Bull	51	+0.196
3	Isack Hadjar	Red Bull	51	+10.704
4	Charles Leclerc	Ferrari	51	+14.136
5	Andrea Kimi Antonelli	Mercedes	51	+14.512
6	Lewis Hamilton	Ferrari	51	+22.382
7	Arvid Lindblad	RB F1 Team	51	+31.159
8	Esteban Ocon	Haas F1 Team	51	+31.189
9	Oliver Bearman	Haas F1 Team	51	+31.929
10	Carlos Sainz	Williams	51	+32.416
11	Nico Hülkenberg	Audi	51	+33.231
12	Liam Lawson	RB F1 Team	51	+34.013
13	Oscar Piastri	McLaren	51	+36.401
14	Sergio Pérez	Cadillac F1 Team	51	+41.400
15	Gabriel Bortoleto	Audi	51	+44.230
16	Valtteri Bottas	Cadillac F1 Team	49	Retired
R	Franco Colapinto	Alpine F1 Team	36	Retired
R	Pierre Gasly	Alpine F1 Team	35	Retired
R	Lando Norris	McLaren	35	Retired
R	Alexander Albon	Williams	29	Retired
R	Fernando Alonso	Aston Martin	20	Retired
R	Lance Stroll	Aston Martin	7	Retired

† George Russell set the fastest lap of the race (1:44.916) on lap 49. Seven drivers retired including both Aston Martins and both Alpines. Valtteri Bottas was classified 16th despite retiring on lap 49 of 51.