George Russell keeps the Red Bulls at bay to conquer Baku
George Russell won the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The Mercedes driver secured victory by the narrowest of margins over Max Verstappen, who finished second. Isack Hadjar, teammate to the four-time World Champion, completed the podium on the very weekend that Red Bull confirmed his seat alongside the Dutchman through to 2027.
During the opening stint, Russell managed to build a significant gap over the chasing pack. However, after two Safety Car periods, Verstappen fought his way back into second place. From that point onwards, the Red Bull driver piled pressure on the Briton, remaining consistently within a second of the lead. In the end, Russell held firm and kept Verstappen behind all the way to the chequered flag, crossing the line just one tenth of a second ahead.
The pair finished the race on the Soft compound after starting from the grid on the C4, while Hadjar opted for an alternative strategy, beginning the race on the C5 and finishing on the Medium. All three podium finishers took advantage of the first Safety Car period to make their pit stop.
The entire field used a combination of the two softest compounds, with 12 drivers opting to start on the Medium and 10 on the Soft. The C4 and C5 were used almost equally throughout the race, with 49% of laps completed on the Medium and 51% on the Soft.
Kimi Antonelli, who finished fifth, retains the lead of the FIA Formula One World Championship standings on 302 points. Thanks to this victory, Russell has significantly reduced the gap and now trails his teammate by just 66 points.
George Russell – P1
“It’s been an incredible weekend and probably one of the strongest of my career so far. I really enjoyed that race and that final stint was some of the most fun I’ve had in a Formula One race. We had strong pace throughout and were able to build a good gap, so when the Safety Car came out it was a little frustrating, but around a circuit like Baku that’s always a possibility.
The restart was probably the most stressful moment of the afternoon with Max right behind me, but I managed it well and from there it was all about staying focused and not making any mistakes. In the final stint we were both pushing hard, and whilst it was intense in the car, those are the moments you enjoy as a driver.
I’ve felt comfortable all weekend, and at the moment things seem to be coming naturally behind the wheel. We’re in a good place, but Formula One changes very quickly so you have to keep pushing. The aim is to keep working hard, keep building this momentum and hopefully continue fighting at the front over the races ahead.”
Max Verstappen – P2
“We had a very strong race today. Yesterday, we found an issue with the engine and changed it, so luckily everything was fixed. For most of the race we were on the Medium tyre, which didn’t perform as well as expected, but we still managed to work our way up the field nicely. Once we swapped to the Soft, it felt much better. We had a good first restart and during the last few laps with George, we were pushing flat out. We had good pace and were both pulling away from those behind. On the final lap it got close as we approached the line because George had turbo lag out of T15 due to the yellow flags. We really maximised the result today and we will, of course, keep trying for a win. All in all, it was a fantastic result for the Team to have two cars on the podium; that is exactly what you want to see. I had a lot of fun today.”
Isack Hadjar – P3
“You can’t really ask for a better comeback than that. The car has been competitive throughout the week and all over the track, so we had the pace to really challenge and be exactly where we wanted to be. Our approach was key to a strong week; taking it step-by-step allowed me to build confidence, and then the lap time comes with that. Ending it with P3 is a really pleasing result. It was a demanding track to make a return at, but once I got into a flow I felt like I never left. The race was great. I enjoyed myself out there; the car was very nice to drive, and battling with Max was fun too. He’s been so strong all weekend, and I was happy to stay behind him as I knew the Soft was the superior tyre, and he showed that at the end. A double podium is an awesome result. It’s the first in a while for the Team, so I’m very happy for everyone as they deserve it.”
Dario Marrafuschi – Pirelli Motorsport Director
“Today’s race largely confirmed our pre-race expectations. The Soft and Medium compounds proved to be the most effective choices, to the extent that the grid was split almost evenly between the two options at the start, regardless of starting position, with some teams differentiating tyre selection between their drivers. Many teams attempted to extend the opening stint in the hope of benefiting from a race neutralisation, a scenario that ultimately materialised.
From a tyre behaviour standpoint, the extremely low degradation observed over the previous days was once again evident during the Grand Prix. Both the C4 and C5 displayed very low wear levels, with no significant graining, allowing drivers to maintain a strong pace for most of the race.
In these conditions, the Soft provided an advantage in terms of grip and driver confidence, particularly noticeable on a demanding circuit such as Baku, to the point that it proved to be the most competitive race tyre. A clear example was provided by the two Red Bull drivers who, despite having identical machinery but opposite strategies, saw the driver on the red-marked tyre deliver the stronger performance.
Overall, drivers were able to push from start to finish with very limited tyre management, focusing mainly on bringing the front axle back into the operating window after the various restarts following neutralisations, in order to avoid lock-ups and braking errors, incidents that nevertheless still occurred. The Hard compound, meanwhile, played no role in the race, as the performance of the other two compounds never made a more conservative option necessary.”
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