George Russell resists Max Verstappen to win dramatic Azerbaijan GP
George Russell pips Max Verstappen to victory in a dramatic Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Mercedes’ George Russell fended off Red Bull’s Max Verstappen to take a deserved Formula 1 victory in a dramatic Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
It was a much-needed result for Russell, who was in complete control of Saturday’s race in Baku before back-to-back safety cars set up a grandstand finish in an otherwise dull grand prix.
Russell survived two safety car restarts and resisted late pressure from a charging Verstappen to claim his third victory in a hugely challenging 2026 season by just a tenth of a second in a tense drag race to the line.
The Briton’s eighth F1 career victory has seen him reduce his deficit to team-mate and championship leader Andrea Kimi Antonelli, but the Italian fought back from 16th on the grid after crashing out of qualifying to take fifth and limit the damage on a rare below-par weekend.
It was not quite a repeat of the spectacular Monza comeback for Antonelli, but salvaging P5 means he still holds comfortable 66-point advantage at the top of the world championship with eight scheduled races remaining.
Isack Hadjar finished a distant third to claim his second podium of the season on an impressive return to racing for Red Bull after recovering from a wrist injury that caused him to miss the last three rounds.
Ferrari did not have the pace to challenge the podium positions as Charles Leclerc fell from second to take fourth at the chequered flag, ahead of the recovering Antonelli and seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton in sixth.
F1 rookie Arvid Lindblad snatched seventh place at the death from Esteban Ocon, who led home Haas team-mate Ollie Bearman as he fights for his F1 future with his seat under threat for 2027.
Carlos Sainz battled back from a five-place grid penalty to take the final point on offer in his upgraded Williams on a day only 15 cars finished.
What had been looking like a rare uneventful race in Baku exploded into life when Alex Albon hit the wall, causing a mid-race safety car.
At the restart, an out-of-control Franco Colapinto wiped out Alpine team-mate Pierre Gasly at Turn 1 in a costly collision that also took out reigning world champion Lando Norris.
The clear-up resulted in another safety car that set-up a 14-lap sprint to the finish to determine the winner.
There was still time for more drama as Valtteri Bottas crashed out on the final lap.
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