Qualifying Report & Results 2025 Azerbaijan F1 GP

Event: Azerbaijan F1 Grand Prix
Track: Baku City Circuit

Weather: Sunny & Dry 21°C
Tarmac: Dry 27°C
Humidity: 56%
Wind: 7.5 km/h South
Pressure: 1014 hPa

Max Verstappen qualified on pole position for the 46th time in his Formula 1 career today. The Red Bull Racing driver scored his first-ever Baku pole for the 2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix. It was Verstappen's sixth pole of the 2025 season and the 109th Formula 1 pole position for Red Bull Racing.

Verstappen Takes Baku Pole After Record Six Red Flags

Max Verstappen emerged from one of the most chaotic qualifying sessions in Formula 1 history to claim pole position for the 2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Six separate red flags turned qualifying in Baku into an almost two-hour marathon, but the Red Bull driver kept his composure when it mattered and produced a 1:41.117 on his final attempt.

Carlos Sainz came remarkably close to delivering a sensational first Williams pole, eventually finishing second, 0.478s behind Verstappen. Liam Lawson produced the best qualifying result of his Formula 1 career to take third for Racing Bulls, with Kimi Antonelli completing an unexpected second row for Mercedes.

Q1: Three Red Flags Turn Opening Session Into Chaos

The warning signs arrived almost immediately in Q1 as strong winds, occasional drops of rain and Baku's unforgiving walls made conditions difficult.

Charles Leclerc initially led for Ferrari before the first red flag was triggered by Alex Albon. The Williams driver clipped the inside wall at Turn 1, breaking his front-left suspension and stopping on track. The incident left Albon at the bottom of the order and interrupted several drivers before they had completed representative laps.

Lewis Hamilton later moved to the top with a 1:41.821, but the session was stopped again when Nico Hülkenberg hit the barrier at Turn 4. The Sauber driver managed to rejoin, but his damaged front wing was left on the circuit and Race Control brought out the second red flag.

The final minutes became increasingly frantic. Pierre Gasly ran into the Turn 4 escape road before Alpine team-mate Franco Colapinto lost the rear at the same corner and crashed into the barrier, causing the third stoppage.

When the session was finally completed, Norris had gone fastest with a 1:41.322, just 0.009s ahead of Verstappen.

Eliminated in Q1: Franco Colapinto, Nico Hülkenberg, Esteban Ocon, Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon.

Q2: Bearman Crashes as Hamilton Misses the Cut

The disruption continued almost immediately in Q2. Oliver Bearman struck the wall on the exit of Turn 2 with his right-rear wheel, damaging the Haas suspension and causing the fourth red flag of qualifying.

Once running resumed, Norris set a 1:41.396 on the Soft tyre while George Russell and Kimi Antonelli showed strong pace for Mercedes. Oscar Piastri also brushed the barrier at Turn 15 but was able to continue.

Leclerc endured a particularly messy sequence of laps, running deep at Turns 1 and 3 before finally producing a time good enough to progress despite also grazing the wall at Turn 2.

Hamilton was unable to repeat the pace that had taken him to P1 in FP2. The Ferrari driver struggled to put together a clean lap and was eventually pushed down to 12th as Tsunoda improved to reach Q3.

Verstappen ended Q2 fastest with a 1:41.255, ahead of Norris, Piastri, Russell and Antonelli.

Eliminated in Q2: Fernando Alonso, Lewis Hamilton, Gabriel Bortoleto, Lance Stroll and Oliver Bearman.

Q3: Sainz Dares to Dream as Leclerc Crashes

With drops of rain beginning to fall around the Baku City Circuit, Q3 developed into an extraordinary battle of timing, tyre choice and survival.

Carlos Sainz was one of the first drivers to complete a representative lap and put his Williams on provisional pole with a 1:41.595. Liam Lawson and Isack Hadjar were also able to bank times before the fifth red flag changed the complexion of the session.

Charles Leclerc locked up at Turn 15 and went straight into the barriers, ending his qualifying session without a Q3 time. The Ferrari driver would therefore start tenth.

Piastri Crash Brings Record Sixth Red Flag

When qualifying resumed, both Verstappen and Norris were pushing hard to attack Sainz's provisional pole, but the session was stopped yet again when championship leader Oscar Piastri crashed at Turn 3.

The McLaren driver carried too much speed into the corner and hit the barrier with the front-right of his MCL39. It was the sixth red flag of qualifying, setting a new Formula 1 record for a single qualifying session.

Piastri was classified ninth without a Q3 lap time, while Leclerc was tenth.

Verstappen Delivers When It Matters

After the final restart, the remaining drivers had essentially one opportunity to produce a lap.

Norris was first onto the circuit but brushed the wall at Turn 15 during a scrappy attempt and could manage only a 1:42.239. That left the McLaren driver seventh, a disappointing result after he had topped both Q1 and FP3.

Verstappen, meanwhile, delivered under maximum pressure. The four-time World Champion completed a clean final lap in 1:41.117, beating Sainz by 0.478s and taking his first pole position at the Baku City Circuit.

The margin was the largest pole advantage in Baku since the circuit first appeared on the Formula 1 calendar in 2016.

Sainz and Lawson Produce Qualifying Surprises

Sainz ultimately had to settle for second, but the result still represented his first front-row start as a Williams driver and the team's first front-row qualifying result since George Russell at the 2021 Belgian grand prix.

Lawson's third place was equally impressive. The Racing Bulls driver delivered his best Formula 1 qualifying result, finishing just 0.010s ahead of Antonelli in fourth.

Russell qualified fifth ahead of Tsunoda, who recorded his best qualifying result since joining Red Bull. Norris could manage only seventh, followed by Hadjar, Piastri and Leclerc.

Ocon Disqualified After Qualifying

Esteban Ocon had originally qualified 18th with a 1:43.004 in Q1, but the Haas driver was later disqualified from the qualifying classification.

The FIA found that Ocon's car failed the rear wing main plane tip deflection test and therefore did not comply with Article 3.15.17 of the Technical Regulations. His qualifying times were removed from the official classification.

Record-Breaking Qualifying Session

The six red flags represented a new Formula 1 qualifying record. Three stoppages came in Q1, one in Q2 and two in Q3, with qualifying ultimately lasting one hour and 58 minutes.

Through all of that disruption, Verstappen emerged with his 46th career pole, his sixth of the season and Red Bull's first pole position at the Baku City Circuit.

Quali Times 2025 Azerbaijan GP

Esteban Ocon originally set a 1:43.004 in Q1 but was later disqualified after his Haas failed the FIA rear wing main plane tip deflection test.

Charles Leclerc took pole position in Baku one year earlier with a 1:41.365 for Ferrari. Verstappen's 1:41.117 pole time in 2025 was therefore 0.248 seconds quicker than the 2024 benchmark.

The fastest sector times during qualifying for the 2025 Azerbaijan F1 GP were:

1. Sector 1: 35.257s – Oscar Piastri, McLaren MCL39 #81.
2. Sector 2: 40.574s – Carlos Sainz, Williams FW47 #55.
3. Sector 3: 24.746s – George Russell, Mercedes W16 #63.

✅ Don't forget to check out our 2025 Azerbaijan F1 GP preview.

About the author

Leopold

Leopold Pleijsier founded F1-Fansite.com in 2001 and has followed Formula 1 since the early 1980s. He writes about daily F1 news, race weekends, drivers and the sport’s history.

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