George Russell produced a dominant qualifying performance in Baku to take pole position for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, beating Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc by more than eight tenths of a second. The Mercedes driver delivered a stunning 1:42.526 in Q3, while Leclerc secured an important front-row start for Ferrari and Lewis Hamilton qualified sixth.
It was a far more difficult session for Kimi Antonelli, whose Q1 accident left him facing a recovery drive from the back of the grid. Isack Hadjar impressed on his return to the Red Bull by qualifying fourth, while Max Verstappen could manage only eighth. The unusual Friday qualifying session formed part of the compressed 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix timetable, with the race itself scheduled for Saturday.
Q1: Kimi Antonelli crashes as both Audi cars are eliminated
Baku qualifying began with Mercedes carrying the strongest claim to pole after showing its pace throughout practice, although Red Bull had issued a warning in FP3 when Max Verstappen moved to the top of the timesheets in the closing moments. McLaren also remained a major unknown after introducing a substantial upgrade package in Azerbaijan, while Ferrari’s true potential was still difficult to assess following a challenging search for the right setup configurations.
The opening Q1 runs initially produced a surprise as Isack Hadjar put his Red Bull at the top of the standings. The French driver benefited from a tow from a car ahead, as did Lewis Hamilton, who briefly placed his Ferrari directly behind him.
The major incident of the session then came from Kimi Antonelli. After setting a time that would have been enough to reach Q2, the Italian made a mistake at Turn 1 and struck the inside wall with his front-left wheel. The impact caused terminal damage to the front suspension, and attempts to bring the Mercedes back to the pits proved unsuccessful. Antonelli will therefore have to attempt another recovery drive in the Grand Prix.
With his team-mate out, Russell capitalised by setting the fastest time of Q1 ahead of the two Red Bulls of Verstappen and Hadjar. The two Ferraris followed, ahead of both McLarens. Another notable development was the elimination of both Audi drivers, Gabriel Bortoleto and Nico Hulkenberg, while the two Cadillac cars and both Aston Martins also failed to progress.
Q2: George Russell stays ahead as Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen chase
Despite losing Antonelli in the opening phase, Mercedes immediately returned to the top when Russell set the provisional benchmark in Q2. Charles Leclerc moved into second after using Hamilton’s slipstream down the main straight, finishing his first attempt around a tenth and a half behind the Mercedes.
Hadjar continued his impressive qualifying session by slotting into third, just two tenths away from Russell’s time. His performance was particularly striking given Verstappen’s greater-than-expected difficulties. With two minutes remaining, the Dutchman was only eighth, although he still held a half-second cushion over the elimination zone.
Verstappen removed any danger on his final run by climbing to second, pushing Leclerc down to third. Russell, meanwhile, continued building confidence in the W17 and stayed on track until the end of the session, improving his previous benchmark by another two tenths.
Oliver Bearman, Liam Lawson, Alexander Albon, Esteban Ocon and Arvid Lindblad were eliminated in Q2, setting up a final pole-position shootout that still featured Ferrari, Mercedes, Red Bull and McLaren.
Q3: George Russell crushes the field as Charles Leclerc takes P2
McLaren finally revealed more of its potential at the start of Q3 after a relatively subdued opening to the weekend. Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris initially formed a provisional one-two, with Piastri leading his team-mate. Russell followed, although the Mercedes driver had gone out carrying a heavier fuel load.
On his second attempt, Russell immediately raised the standard and moved to the top of the session. Ferrari then responded through Leclerc, who delivered a strong lap to claim a provisional front-row position between the number 63 Mercedes and the two McLarens.
There was ultimately no answer to Russell’s final effort. The British driver produced a remarkable 1:42.526 to secure Azerbaijan Grand Prix pole position, finishing more than eight tenths clear of his nearest rival. The scale of the advantage underlined the pace Mercedes had shown throughout the Baku weekend, after Ferrari had already faced difficulties matching its rival in the circuit’s key areas during the Azerbaijan GP’s demanding energy-management challenge.
Leclerc secured second place for Ferrari, holding off Piastri by the smallest possible margin: the McLaren driver finished just one thousandth of a second behind the Monegasque. The detailed gaps and sector differences from qualifying can also be explored through the F1 Qualifying Pace & Sector Comparison.
Hadjar completed an outstanding session by taking fourth and securing a place on the second row. Norris qualified fifth, ahead of Lewis Hamilton in sixth and Pierre Gasly in seventh. Verstappen endured a disappointing qualifying session and could manage only eighth, with Carlos Sainz and Franco Colapinto completing the top ten.
For Ferrari, the final result delivered a mixed picture. Leclerc will start alongside Russell on the front row and therefore from a strong position for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, but the Mercedes driver’s margin demonstrated the scale of the performance Ferrari still had to overcome over a single lap. Hamilton, meanwhile, will begin from the third row in sixth as the Scuderia turns its attention from qualifying pace to Saturday’s race.
