Azerbaijan GP: Max Verstappen Secures Pole Position At Baku City Circuit, Charles Leclerc, Oscar Piastri Crash Out In Chaotic Qualifying

Azerbaijan GP: Red Bull and Dutch driver Max Verstappen grabbed the pole position for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix at the Baku City Circuit on Saturday, September 20.

It was a dramatic Qualifying session at the Baku City Circuit as it was affected by six red flags.

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Amid Multiple Red Flags, Verstappen Grabs Pole Position In Baku

Despite chaos on the track, Verstappen successfully denied Liam Lawson and Carlos Sainz a shock pole position at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The Racing Bull driver Liam Lawson came second at the qualifying, and Williams' Carlos Sainz secured third place on the grid.

In Q3, Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc hit the barrier at Turn 15, following which the red flag was shown and stopped every driver on the track from finishing a lap.

After the session resumed following the red flag, Lando Norris and Max Verstappen were dominating the qualifiers by setting the fastest sector times. However, McLaren driver Oscar Piastri hit the barrier at Turn 3, causing another break in the session.

Verstappen clocked 1m 41.117s after the session resumed following Piastri's crash, and denied Carlos Sainz from getting the pole position.

After Piastri, Lando Norris also failed to take advantage of the situation. With a sloppy lap, the British driver secured P7 on the grid.

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Lewis Hamilton Struggles At Baku City Circuit

Mercedes drivers, Kimi Antonelli and George Russell, also couldn't take the perfect advantage of Piastri's crash. Antonelli and Russell secured fourth and fifth places on the grid, respectively.

Max Verstappen's teammate, Yuki Tsunoda, grabbed sixth place on the grid for the upcoming Azerbaijan GP.

It was another disappointing show from Lewis Hamilton at the qualifying session before the Azerbaijan GP. The legendary driver secured 12th place on the grid for the main race at the Baku City Circuit.

Currently, Oscar Piastri hold the top spot on the Drivers' Standings 2025 with 324 points. Meanwhile, McLaren lead the Constructor's Championship 2025 with 617 points.