Max Verstappen emerged with a dominant pole position after a chaotic qualifying session for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Reigning world champion Verstappen pulled out a stunning lap to deny Carlos Sainz P1, outstripping the Williams driver by almost half a second.
There were a record six red flags during the session, with championship leader Oscar Piastri and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc among those to crash.
Piastri and his team-mate and title rival Lando Norris start ninth and seventh respectively, while Lewis Hamilton is down in 12th after failing to make it out of Q2.
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Who won the F1 race today?
The Sporting News will provide a race report once the action in Baku concludes.
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F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix start grid
| Position | Driver |
| 1 | Max Verstappen |
| 2 | Carlos Sainz |
| 3 | Liam Lawson |
| 4 | Kimi Antonelli |
| 5 | George Russell |
| 6 | Yuki Tsunoda |
| 7 | Lando Norris |
| 8 | Isack Hadjar |
| 9 | Oscar Piastri |
| 10 | Charles Leclerc |
| 11 | Fernando Alonso |
| 12 | Lewis Hamilton |
| 13 | Gabriel Bortoleto |
| 14 | Lance Stroll |
| 15 | Ollie Bearman |
| 16 | Franco Colapinto |
| 17 | Nico Hulkenberg |
| 18 | Pierre Gasly |
| 19 | Alex Albon |
| 20 | Esteban Ocon* |
*Ocon disqualified from qualifying after failing a rear-wing test
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F1 points standings 2025
Here is a look at the F1 standings heading into Sunday’s race.
| Position | Driver | Team | Points |
| 1. | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 324 |
| 2. | Lando Norris | McLaren | 293 |
| 3. | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 230 |
| 4. | George Russell | Mercedes | 194 |
| 5. | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 163 |
| 6. | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | 117 |
| 7. | Alexander Albon | Williams | 70 |
| 8. | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | 66 |
| 9. | Isack Hadjar | Racing Bulls | 38 |
| 10. | Nico Hulkenberg | Sauber | 37 |
| 11. | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 32 |
| 12. | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 30 |
| 13. | Esteban Ocon | Haas | 28 |
| 14. | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 20 |
| 15. | Liam Lawson | Racing Bulls | 20 |
| 16. | Gabriel Bortoleto | Sauber | 18 |
| 17. | Oliver Bearman | Haas | 16 |
| 18. | Carlos Sainz | Williams | 16 |
| 19. | Yuki Tsunoda | Red Bull | 12 |
| 20 | Jack Doohan | Alpine | 0 |
| 21. | Franco Colapinto | Alpine | 0 |
