With the Azerbaijan Grand Prix now behind us, it's time to examine the winners and losers from Baku.
Who else? After a trying 2026 campaign marked by bad luck and occasional lacklustre performances, George Russell was nothing short of exemplary in Baku. Not only was his pace evident as early as FP1, Russell had an answer for every attack that came his way in qualifying and eventually seized pole by a daunting 0.856s, the largest pole margin since 2023.
Russell dominated much of the race, didn’t flinch when presented with not one but two safety cars and resisted the advances of a charging Max Verstappen in the dying laps to take his third victory of the season by just a tenth of a second. Had he found an extra tenth in FP3, Russell would have topped every single session. He may be 66 points off the championship lead, but this performance is a sign of things to come; Kimi Antonelli will not have it all his own way.
An equally obvious candidate, albeit for drastically different reasons, Franco Colapinto will be glad to see the back of Baku. He off strong with a fourth Q3 appearance of the season, spent much of the race in the top ten and looked set to help Alpine secure another double points finish. That was until the safety car restart on lap 36. Colapinto wildly misjudged his braking, went deep and, in doing so, eliminated himself, his teammate and Lando Norris in one disastrous swoop. Norris was particularly vocal in his disapproval post-race and called for an immediate race ban (though he and Colapinto have since cleared the air). Alpine’s de facto team principal Flavio Briatore was equally frustrated, and Colapinto has received a five-place grid penalty for the next race at Sepang. Having made noticeable improvements in 2026 and become a semi-regular points scorer, this was a major stain on Colapinto’s record.
Having missed the last three Grand Prix due to a broken wrist, Hadjar could be forgiven for taking things slow on his first weekend back. Instead, the Red Bull driver outqualified his illustrious teammate, made short work of Charles Leclerc and troubled the podium places for much of the race. Hadjar hung on for third, his second podium of the season and another reminder of his continued form.
Having endured a disappointing 2026 season thus far, Oscar Piastri very nearly turned it around this weekend. Starting third, after qualifying his teammate Norris, Piastri was able to keep both Red Bulls at bay for the first half of the race and looked set for a probable podium. However, a costly lock-up at turn one on lap 40 ended his hopes of a good result and sent him tumbling out of the points. He may not have the result to show for it, but this weekend was a timely reminder of what Piastri is capable of.
Over the last few races, Max Verstappen has quietly become one of Formula 1's most in-form drivers. He’s had his blemishes, of that there’s no doubt, but Baku served as yet another example of the four-time world champion maximising his package. Quick in free practice, though unable to perform in qualifying, Verstappen spent his opening stint fending off his teammate, thanks in part to the latter’s soft tyres. After switching to the red-lined rubber himself under the safety car, Verstappen hit his stride, worked his way into second and came within a tenth of a 72nd career win. He may have fallen just short of victory, but there’s no denying Red Bull’s progress.
On the one hand, Norris is hardly to blame. He was an innocent bystander in that turn one skirmish and lost a valuable points finish through no fault of his own. On the other hand, he was outqualified by Piastri and, for once, posed no threat to him in the race. A lap 30 lockup compounded the reigning world champion’s issues, and while he lost a handful of points thanks to Colapinto, Norris spent much of the race bogged down in midfield obscurity. This is unlikely to be a sign of things to come, but Baku is unlikely to go down as a season highlight for the world champion.
