On Sunday, F1 raced the streets of Baku for the ninth time in the sport’s history at the 2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Here, we reflect on a few of round 17’s biggest stories.
Mad Max tops unfamiliar podium
Max Verstappen claimed the ‘Land of Fire’ as his own, converting pole position to a win and earning a sixth career Grand Slam in the process.
Verstappen’s victory was reminiscent of his dominance in previous seasons of the modern ground effect era, with the Dutchman comfortably leading in all aspects.
In the end, he won the race with a 14.6-second gap between him and P2.
There was also no orange on the podium for the second time this campaign as McLaren had a weekend to forget.
Instead, Mercedes’ George Russell and Williams Racing’s Carlos Sainz took P2 and P3, respectively.
Russell, true to fashion, silently got himself on the podium, while Sainz gave Williams their first podium since the 2021 Belgian GP, when Russell was the driver and finished second.
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McLaren falter despite Ferrari non-threat
Going into the Azerbaijan GP, McLaren looked set to secure the Constructors’ Championship title.
They needed to outscore Ferrari by just nine points, but despite Ferrari not contending for the win, let alone a podium, McLaren couldn’t get the job done.
Indeed, the British outfit’s weekend began to unravel in Saturday’s qualifying when championship leader Oscar Piastri crashed in Q3, leaving him to start P9.
His team-mate Lando Norris didn’t impress either, qualifying in seventh.
Things then went from bad to worse come race day, when Piastri had a jump start, stalled as the lights went out, and subsequently crashed into the wall at turn five, ending his 34-race points-scoring streak in less than a lap.
“Certainly not my finest moment,” Piastri told Sky Sports F1 afterwards.
“I just anticipated the start too much, and it was a silly, simple error with that.
“Then, the crash – I just didn’t anticipate the dirty air in the way I should have. I clearly went into the corner way too hot and that was that.
“The grip level was low, but I should have known that. I’m certainly not blaming it on anything other than myself.
“I just didn’t make the judgement calls that I needed to at the right time, and that’s obviously disappointing.”
Norris, for his part, couldn’t cover enough ground and had to settle for a P7 finish, just ahead of Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, also not doing enough to secure McLaren the title.
With Norris earning only six points, Piastri still holds a significant advantage in the Drivers’ Championship, with 25 points between the Papaya drivers and seven races to go.
As for the Constructors’ title, McLaren will have another chance to wrap things up at the Singapore GP, from October 3-5.
Should McLaren secure the title at the Marina Bay circuit, they will equal Red Bull’s record for most races remaining (six) after winning the Constructors’ crown.
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SportJustSport writers