Down to the wire: Russell Edges Verstappen in Baku

It was Mr. Saturday’s day once again as Mercedes driver George Russell turned his pole position into victory at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

The streets of Baku witnessed a chaotic second half of the race, with Russell’s comfortable lead suddenly under threat after multiple incidents brought out the Safety Car.

Alexander Albon was the first to trigger the drama when the Williams driver crashed into the barriers at Turn 5 on Lap 31. Albon lost control of his car while battling Esteban Ocon, bringing out the Safety Car and bunching the field back together.

Once the wreckage was cleared, racing resumed on Lap 36 — but the restart immediately turned chaotic.

Verstappen made his move on Oscar Piastri for second, while behind them Franco Colapinto locked up and crashed into his Alpine teammate Pierre Gasly. Gasly was then sent into the path of McLaren driver Lando Norris, who hit the barriers and was forced to retire from the race.

With three cars caught up in the Turn 1 incident, the Safety Car was deployed once again to allow marshals to clear the wreckage. Both Alpine drivers and Norris eventually retired from the race.

And once the Safety Car was gone, the race restarted again — but this time, things were much quieter.

Well, at least for everyone except Russell and Verstappen.

Russell had built a lead of more than 10 seconds before the Safety Car periods wiped it away. Verstappen, who had started eighth, had worked his way up to second and suddenly found himself within striking distance of the Mercedes.

For the final laps, Verstappen kept the pressure on Russell, with the Red Bull closing in as the two approached the chequered flag.

Then came the final straight.

Verstappen launched a late attack on Russell, but the Mercedes driver held his nerve and crossed the line just 0.196 seconds ahead of the Red Bull — one of the closest finishes of the season.

Russell took his third victory of the 2026 season after completing all 51 laps, while Verstappen settled for second. Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar completed the podium on his return to racing after missing three Grands Prix through injury.

What looked like a straightforward pole-to-flag victory for Russell quickly became a fight for survival after two Safety Car periods brought the field back together.

But when it mattered most, Mr. Saturday held on.