Max Verstappen topped the timesheets in the first practice session for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, while incidents involving Charles Leclerc and Franco Colapinto brought the session to a halt.
The Dutchman clocked a 1:45.546 on the Soft tires just as the session ended, finishing three-tenths ahead of Lewis Hamilton to secure the fastest time in FP1 at Baku. However, the teams’ plans were interrupted when Charles Leclerc, who had been leading the session, misjudged his entry into Turn 15, going straight into the barriers and bringing out a red flag.
With just under thirty minutes remaining in the first practice session of the Baku weekend, the Monegasque driver caused the red flag due to an error that forced him to end his session earlier than expected.
The dynamics of the incident
After setting the best time of the day ahead of Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc was about to start another timed lap when, at the penultimate corner, his Ferrari went straight into the protective barriers. Analyzing the onboard video, it’s clear that the front axle of car number 16 locked up, preventing the Monegasque driver from steering the car properly. Shortly before ending his session, Charles Leclerc had complained over the radio about several bumps on the Azerbaijan track that made driving difficult, considering them dangerous as well.
Although Charles Leclerc’s damaged Ferrari was cleared with 25 minutes still on the clock, Franco Colapinto caused yet another red flag after hitting the wall at Turn 4. Lewis Hamilton’s session-leading time held firm until the final moments, when Max Verstappen surged to the top of the leaderboard, putting his Red Bull ahead. Sergio Perez rounded out the top three with a solid run of his own.
Lando Norris placed his McLaren in fourth, while Carlos Sainz, as Ferrari’s only active driver at the end, split the McLarens with Oscar Piastri finishing sixth. Fernando Alonso took seventh for Aston Martin, with George Russell in eighth, trailing his Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton by more than six-tenths. Despite being unable to run on the soft compound, Charles Leclerc held onto ninth, while Daniel Ricciardo rounded out the top 10 in the lead Red Bull. Ferrari junior Oliver Bearman, making his second Formula 1 appearance as Kevin Magnussen’s substitute, narrowly outpaced Haas teammate Nico Hulkenberg to claim 11th. Lance Stroll, frustrated with his “undriveable” Aston Martin, followed next, while Valtteri Bottas ended up 14th, outpacing his Sauber teammate Guanyu Zhou by 1.4 seconds.
Result Free practice 1 – Azerbaijan
| # | Driver | Team | Time | Tyre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |   Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1:45.546 |  |
| 2 |   Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1:45.859 | |
| 3 |   Sergio Pérez | Red Bull | 1:45.922 | |
| 4 |  Lando Norris | McLaren | 1:46.027 |  |
| 5 |   Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | 1:46.173 | |
| 6 |   Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 1:46.282 | |
| 7 |  Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 1:46.452 | |
| 8 |  George Russell | Mercedes | 1:46.516 | |
| 9 |   Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:46.608 | |
| 10 |  Daniel Ricciardo | VCARB | 1:46.687 | |
| 11 |  Oliver Bearman | Haas | 1:46.973 | |
| 12 |   Nico Hulkenberg | Haas | 1:47.135 | |
| 13 |   Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 1:47.184 | |
| 14 |   Valtteri Bottas | Stake | 1:47.640 | |
| 15 |   Yuki Tsunoda | VCARB | 1:47.708 | |
| 16 |   Franco Colapinto | Williams | 1:47.901 | |
| 17 |   Alexander Albon | Williams | 1:47.955 | |
| 18 |   Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 1:48.712 | |
| 19 |   Guanyu Zhou | Stake | 1:49.052 | |
| 20 |  Esteban Ocon | Alpine |  |
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