George Russell claimed his fifth pole position of the 2026 FIA Formula One World Championship with a commanding performance in Qualifying for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, beating Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc by 0.837s.

What initially looked like a four-team battle between Mercedes, Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull ultimately became a one-man show in Q3, as Russell found significant time on each of his final two runs. His 1:42.526s lap left Leclerc second, just 0.001s ahead of Oscar Piastri.

Isack Hadjar marked his return to competition with an impressive fourth place for Red Bull, ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris. Lewis Hamilton qualified sixth for Ferrari, followed by Alpine’s Pierre Gasly, Max Verstappen, Williams’ Carlos Sainz and Franco Colapinto.

Russell’s dominant pole was made all the more significant by the early exit of Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli, who crashed at Turn 1 in Q1. The championship leader was unable to continue and will start the race from 16th.

Following a short delay, the opening 18-minute segment got under way on a warm and windy Baku track. Lance Stroll provided an early scare when he locked up and ran wide, although the Aston Martin avoided the barriers.

Hadjar set the initial benchmark with a 1:44.702s lap, while Alpine’s Gasly and Colapinto again showed the pace that had made them contenders for Q3 during practice.

Verstappen was unhappy with the behaviour of his Red Bull, reporting that the car was “bottoming like crazy” and that he was struggling to brake. Russell also complained of front locking before Antonelli brought out the first major interruption of the session.

The Italian lost control at Turn 1 and hit the wall, damaging the Mercedes. He attempted to return to the pits but was instructed to stop in a safe position, with race engineer Pete Bonnington confirming that the suspension could not be repaired in time.

Russell therefore carried Mercedes’ challenge alone. Verstappen, Hadjar and Hamilton all briefly moved ahead, but Russell responded on his final run to reclaim the top spot by mere thousandths.

At the other end of the order, Oliver Bearman escaped the elimination zone with a late improvement, leaving both Audi drivers out. Gabriel Bortoleto qualified 17th and Nico Hülkenberg 18th, while Alonso, Pérez, Bottas and Stroll were also eliminated.

With Antonelli’s Mercedes already out, the remaining 15 drivers returned for Q2. Russell again set the pace, establishing a 1:43.686s benchmark ahead of Leclerc, the two McLarens and Hamilton.

Hadjar continued his strong return, moving into third and just 0.194s off Russell to underline the closeness between the leading teams. Gasly also impressed for Alpine after benefiting from a tow from team mate Colapinto to move into seventh.

The battle for the final Q3 places was particularly close. Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad both fell short, with Lindblad unable to recover from another mistake. They were joined in elimination by Bearman, Williams’ Alex Albon and Haas driver Esteban Ocon.

Russell finished the segment fastest with a late 1:43.462s lap, two tenths ahead of Verstappen, setting up a potentially close fight for pole.

McLaren initially upset the order in the pole shoot-out, with Norris and Piastri moving ahead of Russell on their first attempts. Piastri’s 1:43.571s put him provisionally first, while Hadjar subsequently climbed to third.

Russell responded in emphatic fashion. His second run produced a 1:43.037s lap, around half a second faster than Piastri, before he found another five tenths on his final attempt to set the decisive 1:42.526s.

Leclerc improved to take second for Ferrari, while Piastri remained just 0.001s behind in third. Hadjar secured fourth, with Norris dropping to fifth after locking up on his final lap.

Hamilton was sixth ahead of Gasly and Verstappen, who could manage only eighth after encountering a yellow flag. Sainz put the upgraded Williams ninth, with Colapinto completing the top 10 for Alpine.

“It’s been a while, so it definitely feels good,” said Russell. “It’s probably the biggest margin of my whole career, even including F2, F3 days, so the lap felt really sweet. The car’s been feeling great this weekend, and on a track like this, when you can hook it up like that, it feels really amazing.”

Behind the top 10, Bearman qualified 11th ahead of Lawson, Albon, Ocon and Lindblad. Antonelli will start 16th after his Q1 crash, with Bortoleto and Hülkenberg behind.

The two Cadillacs will be promoted to 19th and 20th on the grid, with Sergio Pérez ahead of Valtteri Bottas, as Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll face grid penalties for power unit component changes.

2026 FIA Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix – Qualifying 
1 George Russell Mercedes 1:42.526 - -
2 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:43.363 0.837 
3 Oscar Piastri McLaren/Mercedes 1:43.364 0.838 
4 Isack Hadjar Red Bull/Red Bull Ford 1:43.500 0.974 
5 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 1:43.672 1.146
6 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari 1:43.858 1.332
7 Pierre Gasly Alpine/Mercedes 1:44.047 1.521
8 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Red Bull Ford 1:44.081 1.555 
9 Carlos Sainz Williams/Mercedes 1:44.566 2.040 
10 Franco Colapinto Alpine/Mercedes 1:44.963 
11 Oliver Bearman Haas/Ferrari 1:44.775 
12 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls/Red Bull Ford 1:44.860 2.334 
13 Alexander Albon Williams/Mercedes 1:45.001 2.475 
14 Esteban Ocon Haas/Ferrari 1:45.016 2.490 
15 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls/Red Bull Ford 1:45.106 2.580 
16 Kimi Antonelli Mercedes - - -
17 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi 1:45.799 3.273 
18 Nico Hülkenberg Audi 1:45.920 3.394 
19 Sergio Pérez Cadillac/Ferrari 1:46.658 4.132 
20 Valtteri Bottas Cadillac/Ferrari 1:48.290 5.764
21 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin/Honda 1:46.593 4.067
22 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Honda 1:47.337 4.811