2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix
Formula One motor race
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix (officially known as the Formula 1 Qatar Airways Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2026) was a Formula One motor race that was held on 26 September 2026, at the Baku City Circuit in Baku, Azerbaijan. It was the fifteenth round of the 2026 Formula One World Championship. George Russell (Mercedes) took pole position for the event and went on to win the race to take his first career Grand Slam. The two Red Bull drivers Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar completed the podium.
Baku, Azerbaijan
| 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Race 15 of 23 in the 2026 Formula One World Championship
| |||||
|
Layout of the Baku City Circuit | |||||
| Race details[1] | |||||
| Date | 26 September 2026 | ||||
| Official name | Formula 1 Qatar Airways Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2026 | ||||
| Location |
Baku City Circuit Baku, Azerbaijan | ||||
| Course | Street circuit | ||||
| Course length | 6.003 km (3.730 miles) | ||||
| Distance | 51 laps, 306.042 km (190.166 miles) | ||||
| Weather | Sunny | ||||
| Pole position | |||||
| Driver | Mercedes | ||||
| Time | 1:42.526 | ||||
| Fastest lap | |||||
| Driver |
 George Russell | Mercedes | |||
| Time | 1:44.916 on lap 49 | ||||
| Podium | |||||
| First | Mercedes | ||||
| Second | Red Bull Racing-Red Bull Ford | ||||
| Third | Red Bull Racing-Red Bull Ford | ||||
|
Lap leaders | |||||
Background
The event was held at the Baku City Circuit in Baku for the tenth time in the circuit's history, having previously held one edition of the European Grand Prix in 2016, across the weekend of 24–26 September.[2][3] The Grand Prix was the fifteenth round of the 2026 Formula One World Championship and the ninth running of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.[4] The Grand Prix was originally scheduled for 27 September but was moved forward by one day to accommodate Remembrance Day, following a request from the promoter and relevant government stakeholders.[2]
Championship standings before the race
Going into the weekend, Kimi Antonelli led the Drivers' Championship with 292 points, 81 points ahead of teammate George Russell in second and 101 ahead of Lewis Hamilton in third. Mercedes, with 503 points, led the Constructors' Championship from Ferrari and McLaren, who were second and third with 358 and 306 points, respectively.[5]
Entrants
The drivers and teams were the same as the season entry list with no additional stand-in drivers for the race.[6] Isack Hadjar (Red Bull), who injured his wrist before the Dutch Grand Prix, returned for this event. His seat for the last three Grands Prix had been filled by Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls), with Red Bull reserve driver Yuki Tsunoda replacing Lawson.[7]
Tyre choices
Tyre supplier Pirelli selected its C3, C4, and C5 compounds—the softest in its range—for the event, designating them as hard, medium, and soft, respectively.[8]
Practice
Three free practice sessions were held for the event. The first free practice session was held on 24 September 2026, at 12:30 local time (UTC+4), and was topped by George Russell (Mercedes) ahead of Max Verstappen (Red Bull) and Charles Leclerc (Ferrari). The second free practice session was held on the same day, at 16:00 local time, and was topped by Russell ahead of his teammate Kimi Antonelli and Verstappen. A red flag was observed due to Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) hitting the barriers at turn 8. The third free practice session was held on 25 September 2026, at 12:30 local time, and was topped by Verstappen ahead of Russell and Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari).[1]
Qualifying
Qualifying was held on 25 September 2026, and was scheduled to start at 16:00 local time (UTC+4), before being delayed to 16:04. The session determined the starting grid order for the race.[1]
Qualifying report
In Q1, Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) clipped the inside wall in the first turn and damaged his front-left suspension, thus stopping himself from partaking in any further sessions, qualifying in sixteenth.[9]
Qualifying classification
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Constructor | Qualifying times | Final grid | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | |||||
| 1 | 63 | George Russell |
Mercedes | 1:43.615 | 1:43.462 | 1:42.526 | 1 |
| 2 | 16 |  Charles Leclerc |
Ferrari | 1:44.360 | 1:43.780 | 1:43.363 | 2 |
| 3 | 81 |  Oscar Piastri |
McLaren-Mercedes | 1:45.014 | 1:43.814 | 1:43.364 | 3 |
| 4 | 6 |  Isack Hadjar |
Red Bull Racing-Red Bull Ford | 1:44.161 | 1:43.880 | 1:43.500 | 4 |
| 5 | 1 | Lando Norris |
McLaren-Mercedes | 1:44.571 | 1:44.020 | 1:43.672 | 5 |
| 6 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton |
Ferrari | 1:44.260 | 1:44.037 | 1:43.858 | 6 |
| 7 | 10 | Pierre Gasly |
Alpine-Mercedes | 1:44.489 | 1:44.106 | 1:44.047 | 7 |
| 8 | 3 |  Max Verstappen |
Red Bull Racing-Red Bull Ford | 1:44.041 | 1:43.706 | 1:44.081 | 8 |
| 9 | 55 |  Carlos Sainz Jr. |
Atlassian Williams-Mercedes | 1:45.104 | 1.44.629 | 1:44.566 | 14a |
| 10 | 43 |  Franco Colapinto |
Alpine-Mercedes | 1:45.106 | 1:44.683 | 1:44.963 | 9 |
| 11 | 87 | Oliver Bearman |
Haas-Ferrari | 1:45.288 | 1:44.775 | N/A | 10 |
| 12 | 30 |  Liam Lawson |
Racing Bulls-Red Bull Ford | 1:45.535 | 1:44.860 | N/A | 11 |
| 13 | 23 |  Alexander Albon |
Atlassian Williams-Mercedes | 1:45.031 | 1:45.001 | N/A | 12 |
| 14 | 31 | Esteban Ocon |
Haas-Ferrari | 1:45.039 | 1:45.016 | N/A | 13 |
| 15 | 41 | Arvid Lindblad |
Racing Bulls-Red Bull Ford | 1:45.381 | 1:45.106 | N/A | 15 |
| 16 | 12 |  Kimi Antonelli |
Mercedes | 1:45.504 | No time | N/A | 16 |
| 17 | 5 |  Gabriel Bortoleto |
Audi | 1:45.799 | N/A | N/A | 17 |
| 18 | 27 |  Nico Hülkenberg |
Audi | 1:45.920 | N/A | N/A | 18 |
| 19 | 14 | Fernando Alonso |
Aston Martin Aramco-Honda | 1:46.593 | N/A | N/A | 21b |
| 20 | 11 |  Sergio Pérez |
Cadillac-Ferrari | 1:46.658 | N/A | N/A | 20c |
| 21 | 18 |  Lance Stroll |
Aston Martin Aramco-Honda | 1:47.337 | N/A | N/A | 22d |
| 22 | 77 |  Valtteri Bottas |
Cadillac-Ferrari | 1:48.290 | N/A | N/A | 19 |
| 107% time: 1:50.868 | |||||||
| Source:[10][11] | |||||||
Notes
- ^a – Carlos Sainz Jr. received a five-place grid penalty for failing to slow for yellow flags in Q3.[11][12]
- ^b – Fernando Alonso received a 30-place grid penalty for exceeding his quota of power unit elements.[11][13][14]
- ^c – Sergio Pérez received a three-place grid penalty for impeding Oscar Piastri in Q1.[11][15]
- ^d – Lance Stroll received a 20-place grid penalty for exceeding his quota of power unit elements.[11][16]
Race
The race was held on 26 September 2026, at 15:00 local time (UTC+4), and was run for 51 laps.[1]
Race classification
Notes
- ^a – Gabriel Bortoleto finished 13th on track, but received a post-race 10-second time penalty for overtaking under yellow flags.[17][19]
- ^b – Valtteri Bottas was classified as he completed more than 90% of the race distance.[17]
Championship standings after the race
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
- Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.