Now that's a very different Formula 1 grid from the norm! A bunch of unfamiliar drivers hogging the first two rows in cars that have no place starting, where they seldom if ever start from, except, of course, Max Verstappen launching his Red Bull from pole in Baku today.
In an incident-packed but riveting Azerbaijan Grand Prix Qualifying on Saturday, Verstappen did what Verstappen does: when all around him lost their heads, he just 'sent it' as he says, and I am predicting the Red Bull ace will do a Monza and scurry away.
The best of the Papaya challengers sits on the fourth row and seek to limit the damage on a day McLaren could wrap up the 2025 F1 Constructors' title with seven rounds remaining!
24 hours earlier, six Red Flags caused by bent metal, rain, and running out of the tyres Max actually wanted for Q3, and yet the Red Bull still ended up with pole in Baku. That’s now six poles in 2025, his first in Azerbaijan, and he has looked invincible since Monza. The rest? Chasing again.
If anyone deserved the headlines yesterday, it was Sainz. He parked his Williams on the front row, outqualifying Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren in the process. Yes, Verstappen is untouchable, but Carlos reminded us all what he is capable of.
For a team that spent a decade in the doldrums, a Williams front-row start is a throwback to glory days long forgotten. Now he dares to say it: “I’ll give my best to get Williams their first podium.” You almost want him to pull it off.
Sainz on the front row as Ferrari drop the ball big time
And if ever we needed proof that Formula 1 gods have a sense of humour, they engineered that fate, handed former Ferrari driver Sainz (fired to make way for Lewis Hamilton) on the front row in a wheelbarrow, while the Reds bombed on a day they thought they had a shot at pole. You can't script this stuff.
Lawson showed up with a well-timed lap. P3 on the grid in Baku, Racing Bulls’ best result of the season, and all by keeping his head while others smashed theirs into walls. He barely remembered the session because it was so frantic: “You’re trying to fight your brain and not back off,” Lawson explained. He fought it - and won.
Driver of Qualifying in my book was Kimi Antonelli, who nearly fluffed it in Q1, almost tumbling out after a scrappy run, but somehow salvaged it amid ill-advised pressure live on air from Mercedes boss and mentor Toto Wolff.
Despite staring at a Q1 exit, the Italian teenager delivered when it mattered, sticking it P4 and outpacing Russell to boot for only the second time this season. For a driver still learning the intense pressure of F1 qualifying, it was a statement recovery. While his raw speed is undeniable, the test will be in the race today, where he will attempt to beat his teammate for the first time.
Russell the only real challenger in Verstappen's mirrors
Russell’s Saturday was solid rather than spectacular, and Kimi ahead will not be a pleasant sight for the team leader. P5 on the grid in a car that looked capable of more, but at least he avoided joining the crash parade. Sunday is redemption territory: play it safe, and he risks being overshadowed.
Throw caution to the wind, and maybe, just maybe, George stops the headlines being all about Antonelli beating him. In fact, I would hazard a bet that Russell might be the only driver starting from the first three rows who could prevent a runaway victory by Verstappen today.
The Dutchman's Red Bull teammate, Yuki Tsunoda, kept his car in one piece and slotted into P6, albeit over a second off Verstappen, but at least comfortably in the top ten for a change. Finally, the Japanese driver is RBR's first line of defence to the McLaren recovery today. Let's see how he handles that task...
Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri will have one goal, maybe two: Beat one another, then try catch Max. Thus, it will be interesting how Yuki will play the 'team' game he has failed so miserably at because he simply lacks the pace Max can extract from the RB21.
Clearly, it is in a better window for both drivers, time for Yuki to show what he has got. Hold up the World Champion contenders as Max disappears into the distance would be a great start.
McLaren got it wrong in Qualifying
Sent out first in Q3, Norris brushed the wall and ended up only P7 when the conditions improved for everyone else. He didn’t hold back on the strategy call, saying McLaren got it wrong. For drivers in the thick of a title fight, this was exactly the kind of Saturday McLaren don't need as Verstappen finds magic form of late.
If Lawson’s P3 was a statement, Hadjar’s P8 made it a party in Faenza. Both Racing Bulls in the top ten, both ahead of at least one Ferrari and one McLaren. Hadjar wasn’t as sparkling as his teammate, but keeping it clean in Baku is sometimes the best policy. He did so, and on Sunday, he could be the spoiler who picks up places if chaos reigns again. Podium finishes are contagious!
Title contenders aren’t supposed to stick their car in the wall in Q3, but Piastri did just that. P9 on the grid feels like an open goal wasted. The Aussie admitted it was down to pushing too hard: “I think I just braked a little bit late.”
Sunday will be damage limitation, though Baku has a way of rewarding the brave. Beating Norris will be his goal, whether Max wins or not, matters not to the title race at this stage.
Leclerc crashing out in Baku is like rain in Spa, inevitable at some point! The Monaco Kid, who usually sparkles here, admitted he’s been “struggling massively” all weekend. Tenth on the grid after clouting the walls was the inevitable conclusion.
Charles said the medium tyres never came alive. For Ferrari, both cars qualifying outside the top ten is nothing short of catastrophic when they felt they had a pole-winning piece of kit at their disposal. Can he turn a miserable Saturday into magic on Sunday for the Scuderia?
Alonso vs Hamilton
Alonso will start on the same row as his old foe Hamilton, but sadly for him, didn’t trouble the sharp end. He has now outqualified his teammate, Lance Stroll 28-0. For a man who lives to sniff podiums, this was a low-key Saturday for the Spaniard, and as is usual, the Aston Martin looked blunt when it mattered.
Nevertheless, lining up in P11, expect Alonso to be Alonso in the race, all elbows out. Opportunistic starting just outside the top ten means he’ll need chaos ahead to see daylight. Luckily for him, Baku and chaos go hand in hand, and he is a master of those conditions.
A winner here with Mercedes in 2018, Hamilton was speedy in practice and optimistic that Ferrari are making progress, but ultimately that promise was floored by his Q2 exit. The seven-time F1 World Champion admitted: “I honestly thought I was shooting for pole today." No surprise, Ferrari got their tyre strategy wrong, leaving him on the back foot.
While his Williams teammate lines up on the front row of the grid, at the other end, Albon will start from the back row. He admitted a “rookie error” clipping Turn 1 on his first flyer, bringing out the opening Red Flag.
Expecting a bent metal Sunday?
That triggered the Baku 'wall magnets' and the inevitable bent metal that goes with such sessions. Nico Hülkenberg added a second Red Flag in Q1. Franco Colapinto embarrassed Alpine by crashing after being distracted by teammate Pierre Gasly's off. The Alpine sh!tshow continues unabated under the leadership of Flavio Briatore.
Ollie Bearman brought Q2 to a halt when he clipped the wall and broke his Haas suspension. Then, of course, came Leclerc and Piastri in Q3, both supposed front-runners reduced to Red Flag statistics. Six interruptions in total — the Baku chaos tax, paid in carbon fibre.
These 'crash test dummies' will be looking to make amends today and also reward their crews for burning the midnight oil, thanks to their waywardness, suggesting that today's race could add to their load.
With Qualifying and the Formula 2 races in Baku this weekend to go by, this will be an interesting afternoon... And could be a long one too. Enjoy the 2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix!
2025 Formula 1 Points Standings after 16 Rounds
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