George Russell converted pole position into victory at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, surviving two Safety Car periods and a final-lap attack from Max Verstappen to secure a hard-fought Mercedes win at Baku City Circuit.
Russell controlled much of the opening half of the race, building a comfortable advantage over Oscar Piastri before Alex Albon’s accident triggered the first Safety Car. A second incident involving both Alpine drivers and Lando Norris reshuffled the field and brought Verstappen into contention for victory.
Despite sustained pressure from the Red Bull driver in the closing stages, Russell held on to cross the line just 0.1 seconds ahead. Isack Hadjar completed the podium in third, capitalising on Piastri’s costly mistake after the second restart.
Russell Controls the Start as Red Bull Moves Forward
Russell made a clean getaway from pole position and retained the lead into Turn 1, while Piastri passed Charles Leclerc to move into second.
Red Bull immediately began recovering ground. Verstappen gained a position against Pierre Gasly at the start before passing Lewis Hamilton on lap two. Hadjar was also making progress, overtaking Norris for fourth on lap three before Verstappen followed him through two corners later.
The Red Bull pair then dispatched Leclerc, with Hadjar moving into third at Turn 4 and Verstappen completing his pass on the Ferrari towards the end of the lap.
Russell, meanwhile, was beginning to establish his authority at the front. By lap five, the Mercedes driver had opened a 2.5-second advantage over Piastri, while Hadjar and Verstappen were separated by just half a second.
Red Bull subsequently instructed Hadjar to release his faster teammate. The position change on lap seven promoted Verstappen to third and brought him within approximately one second of Piastri.
Although the McLaren driver reported declining rear grip, he initially kept Verstappen out of attacking range.
Behind the leading group, Lance Stroll became the race’s first retirement after stopping at Turn 15 with a technical problem on lap nine.
Russell Builds His Advantage as Verstappen Struggles
Russell’s pace remained consistent through the opening stint.
By lap 18, his advantage over Piastri had increased to 7.5 seconds, while Verstappen continued to follow the McLaren at approximately one second.
The Dutchman’s pursuit became increasingly difficult as his tyres began to deteriorate. Verstappen reported that they were no longer performing as expected, allowing the gap to Piastri to grow to 1.5 seconds.
Hadjar, running directly behind his teammate, informed Red Bull that he had more pace. He received permission to attack on lap 27, but Verstappen successfully defended third.
Further back, Antonelli was recovering through the midfield. The Mercedes driver passed Esteban Ocon, Albon, Liam Lawson and Oliver Bearman to reach the points, while Hamilton overtook Norris for sixth on lap 17.
Fernando Alonso joined Stroll on the retirement list on lap 23 after encountering a suspected technical problem.
At the front, Russell continued extending his lead despite reporting slight contact between his tyre and the wall on lap 25. Mercedes monitored the tyre-pressure data, but the incident did not immediately compromise his pace.
One lap later, his advantage over Piastri had reached 10 seconds.
The race appeared firmly under Russell’s control until an accident approaching the final third of the Grand Prix changed the competitive picture.
Albon Crash Triggers Safety Car and Reshuffles Strategy
The first major turning point arrived on lap 30.
Norris locked up at Turn 1 and lost positions to Gasly and Antonelli, dropping to ninth. Shortly afterwards, Albon crashed into the barriers at Turn 6, bringing out the Safety Car.
With the leading cars already beyond the pit entry when the incident occurred, the first opportunity to stop came on the following lap.
Mercedes, Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren brought their drivers in, with the rest of the field following as teams responded to the neutralisation.
Russell and Verstappen selected soft tyres for the restart, alongside Gasly, Antonelli, Norris, Franco Colapinto, Arvid Lindblad, Gabriel Bortoleto, Sergio Pérez and Carlos Sainz. The remaining drivers continued on mediums.
The resulting tyre split introduced a new strategic dimension, particularly with Verstappen now positioned to attack Piastri at the restart.
Verstappen Takes Second Before Another Baku Collision
Racing resumed on lap 36, and Verstappen immediately capitalised.
The Red Bull driver passed Piastri to take second, but the field barely had an opportunity to settle before another incident brought the Safety Car back onto the circuit.
The two Alpine drivers made contact, with Norris caught up in the incident while running around the outside. The McLaren driver lost control, half-spun and struck the barriers with the rear of his car.
Norris retired, while the collision also ended the races of Colapinto and Gasly.
Following the second Safety Car period, the Grand Prix resumed on lap 39 with Russell leading Verstappen.
Piastri’s hopes of challenging for the podium then unravelled.
The McLaren driver locked up towards the end of the straight on the following lap, losing considerable ground and falling to 15th.
His mistake promoted Hadjar to third, placing both Red Bulls on course for a podium finish. Verstappen, meanwhile, was now within approximately one second of Russell.
Russell Resists Verstappen in Final-Lap Fight
With the interruptions over, the contest for victory developed into a direct fight between Russell and Verstappen.
The Mercedes driver retained the lead, but Verstappen remained close enough to threaten through Baku’s extended acceleration zones.
Antonelli continued his recovery further behind, passing Hamilton on lap 43 to move into fifth.
At the front, Verstappen faced an additional concern when he was noted by the stewards for a potential rules infringement. His pursuit nevertheless continued.
On lap 47, the Red Bull driver clipped the wall with his tyre at the exit of Turn 16 and asked his team to check for damage. The contact did not prevent him from maintaining pressure on Russell, with the gap shrinking to approximately half a second.
Lindblad also made progress in the closing stages, completing an outside pass on Bearman on lap 48 to take eighth.
Russell, however, remained under the greatest pressure of anyone on the circuit.
Verstappen stayed within striking distance through the final laps and launched one last attempt to take the lead before the chequered flag. Russell held his position.
After controlling the opening stint and managing two Safety Car restarts, the Mercedes driver crossed the line just 0.1 seconds ahead of Verstappen to win the 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Hadjar finished third, completing a double podium for Red Bull after recovering from his early position swap with Verstappen.
Baku’s two neutralisations had erased Russell’s substantial early advantage, while Piastri’s late lock-up and Norris’s retirement transformed McLaren’s afternoon. Verstappen came within a fraction of a second of turning those interruptions into victory, but Russell’s defence ensured Mercedes left Azerbaijan with
the win.
