Azerbaijan GP: George Russell holds off Max Verstappen for victory in thrilling Baku finale as Kimi Antonelli recovers to fifth

· 9 min read

George Russell held off Max Verstappen in a thrilling finale to claim victory in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix by just a tenth of a second.

Mercedes' Russell had been on course for a dominant victory before two Safety Cars wiped out the 11-second lead he had built and left him desperately defending Red Bull's Verstappen in the closing stages.

The lights-to-flag triumph reduces Russell's deficit to his team-mate Kimi Antonelli at the top of the world championship to 66 points after the Italian fought back from 16th on the grid, following a qualifying crash, to finish fifth.

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The Azerbaijan GP saw a dramatic ending as Valtteri Bottas crashed on the final lap, and George Russell fended off Max Verstappen for the win

Isack Hadjar took third to seal Red Bull's first double-podium since the 2024 Chinese Grand Prix, completing an impressive comeback after missing three races with a wrist injury.

Charles Leclerc took fourth for Ferrari after dropping back from second in the early stages, while his team-mate Lewis Hamilton finished where he started in sixth after lacking pace throughout.

Lando Norris was taken out of the race along with Pierre Gasly when the latter's Alpine team-mate Franco Colapinto crashed into them at the restart after the first Safety Car interruption, which had been caused by Williams' Alex Albon crashing out.

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There was carnage on the safety car restart after contact between Alpine team-mates resulted in Lando Norris crashing out

Colapinto apologised for what he described as " a big mistake" but a frustrated Norris called for the FIA to issue bans for such incidents, and said that some drivers "shouldn't be in Formula 1".

The result leaves Russell as the only realistic threat to Antonelli claiming the title, with third-placed Hamilton now 103 points back, and fourth-placed Norris 116 points off the lead with eight rounds remaining.

Mercedes also took another step towards sealing a first constructors' title since 2021, moving 160 points clear of Ferrari at the top of the standings.

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Alex Albon found himself in the wall at Turn Five

That multi-car collision opened up points-scoring opportunities for others, with Arvid Lindblad taking seventh after overtaking Haas' Esteban Ocon on the run to the chequered flag.

Oliver Bearman was just behind them to secure a double-points finish for Haas, while Carlos Sainz took the final point for Williams as he overcame a five-place grid penalty and losing time from pitting before the first Safety Car, unlike most of the field.

Another dismal weekend for Aston Martin saw both Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll fail to finish the race after suffering technical issues.

Azerbaijan GP Result: Top 10

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

Supreme Russell overcomes Safety Car scare

Russell had been imperious as he took pole by the best part of a second on Friday, and backed up that performance by making a fine start to comfortably retain the lead, while Piastri got past Leclerc behind him.

While it took Verstappen just seven laps to surge from eighth on the grid up to third, Piastri then provided a blocker that had enabled Russell to build an 11-second lead by the time Albon crashed into the barrier with the leaders on their 31st lap.

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George Russell holds onto the lead on the opening lap

The field poured into the pits during the stoppage before a short-lived restart at the start of lap 36.

Russell controlled the rolling restart well, but Verstappen got past Piastri before chaos ensued behind, with Colapinto locking up before sliding into Gasly, who was shunted into the path of Norris.

That left Russell with the speedy Verstappen on his rear wing when the race restarted with 13 laps remaining.

Another well-managed restart kept Russell in front, but he was unable to shake Verstappen, creating a tense finale.

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Watch how Isack Hadjar and Max Verstappen gain several places with brilliant overtakes as they work together in the early stages

Russell appeared to have seen off the threat as the final lap begun, but the stricken Cadillac of Valtteri Bottas caused him to slow under yellow flags and threw off his energy deployment for the remainder of the lap.

That gave Verstappen an opportunity, and the Dutchman was very nearly able to claim his first victory of the season, as he closed to within 0.196s as the pair took the chequered flag.

The margin was the smallest a race has been decided by since Michael Schumacher beat Rubens Barrichello by 0.011s as Ferrari stage-managed the finish of the 2022 United States Grand Prix.

Russell said: "The first half of the race felt pretty plain-sailing, getting the gap. The Safety Car restart with Max behind, I thought 'this is not going to be easy' and he drove incredibly at the end of the race.

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George Russell describes his tense showdown with Max Verstappen

"When the yellow flag came out [for Bottas crash], I lifted off the power and when I went back, I had no turbo, so then I had no power and Max almost got me at the line

"That would have been a real shame but all in all an incredible weekend."

It would have been extremely cruel for Russell to miss out on victory on what had been his most complete weekend of the season since the opening round in Australia back in March.

While Russell still has an enormous task on his hands to catch Antonelli, especially given he will receive a grid penalty for taking a new engine at one of the remaining races, the result provides the Brit with a huge confidence boost after being outperformed by his team-mate for much of the season.

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Red Bull drivers Isack Hadjar and Max Verstappen reflect on the race

The victory brought Russell back level with Antonelli on eight career wins after the Italian had moved ahead of him last time out in Madrid.

"It's amazing to be back on the top step of the podium," Russell added. "I want to say a big thanks to the team for continuing to believe in me through the tough moments and helped me come through it. I'm really proud to have had this weekend."

Antonelli limits damage on 'worst weekend' of season

Having been flawless for much of the season, Antonelli finally faltered on the unforgiving streets of the Baku City Circuit as he clipped a barrier in the first part of qualifying on Friday.

The 20-year-old had remarkably fought back from 19th on the grid to win in Monza earlier this month after taking a penalty for changing his engine, but there was to be no repeat on this occasion.

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Kimi Antonelli hits the wall during qualifying

Antonelli actually dropped a place from 16th on the grid on the opening lap, and it took him 17 laps to work his way up into the top 10.

He was ninth, trailing Gasly by about three seconds shortly before the first Safety Car was deployed, at which point some good fortune aided his cause.

First, Norris locked up and went off track, dropping behind Gasly and Antonelli. Then came Albon's crash and the Safety Car, after which Gasly was taken out in the crash that Antonelli only narrowly avoided.

A further place was gifted to Antonelli when Piastri imitated Norris by locking up and running off track, dropping the McLaren from third to outside the points.

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Lando Norris hits out after being taken out

Antonelli eased past the struggling Hamilton on lap 42, and was very close to overtaking another Ferrari as he finished less than four tenths behind Leclerc in the battle for fourth.

"I think today is one of those days where you have to be happy with P5," Antonelli told Sky Sports F1.

"It was not an easy race at all, but overall, was one of those weekends where I was always a step behind, especially after missing half of FP2.

Despite his struggles, Antonelli remains an overwhelming favourite for the title, and says he's excited at having an immediate opportunity to return to form at next weekend's rescheduled Bahrain Grand Prix, which is being hosted in Malaysia due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

"It's exciting," Antonelli added. "George has done an incredible weekend, he's driven incredibly. He had a lot of confidence.

"And this weekend was my worst of the year by far in terms of performance. I wasn't there, I wasn't really present, especially with what happened so early on.

"I just didn't drive, didn't take the same risk, especially after qualifying. Today was more damage-save mode, instead of full-attack."

Azerbaijan GP Result

Driver Team Time
1) George Russell Mercedes 1:38.02.143
2) Max Verstappen Red Bull +0.196
3) Isack Hadjar Red Bull +10.704
4) Charles Leclerc Ferrari +14.136
5) Kimi Antonelli Mercedes +14.512
6) Lewis Hamilton Ferrari +22.382
7) Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls +31.159
8) Esteban Ocon Haas +31.189
9) Oliver Bearman Haas +31.929
10) Carlos Sainz Williams +32.416
11) Nico Hulkenberg Audi +33.231
12) Liam Lawson Racing Bulls +34.013
13) Gabriel Bortoleto Audi +34.230
14) Oscar Piastri McLaren +36.401
15) Sergio Perez Cadillac +41.400
Valtteri Bottas Cadillac DNF
Franco Colapinto Alpine DNF
Pierre Gasly Alpine DNF
Lando Norris McLaren DNF
Alex Albon Williams DNF
Fernando Alonso Aston Martin DNF
Lance Stroll Aston Martin DNF

Formula 1 heads to Malaysia for the first time since 2017 as it hosts the Bahrain Grand Prix at the Sepang International Circuit - watch live coverage from Friday morning, live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with NOW - no contract, cancel anytime