Piastri crashes in qualifying as Verstappen takes pole in chaotic Azerbaijan GP

Oscar Piastri suffered a dramatic crash in the final qualifying for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, slamming his McLaren into the barriers and ending his session in ninth place, his worst grid slot of the season. The Australian championship leader appeared to push too hard on Baku’s narrow street circuit amid windy, rain-spattered conditions.

Afterwards, Piastri said he thought he braked late and that there was no data to review, which he described as a disappointing way to end. “I think I just braked a little bit late. I have not seen any data or anything, but it's normally what happens when you end up locking your brake,” he said. “So, yeah, just disappointing. Obviously, I felt like the car was in a good place and it's a disappointing way to end.”

Max Verstappen won pole position in a crash-strewn, wind-swept session, taking his sixth pole of the season as the field endured a nearly two-hour session punctuated by six red flags. Lando Norris, the closest challenger in the standings, could not capitalize after brushing the wall on a late-run attempt and finished seventh.

Piastri’s team-mate and nearest title rival, Norris, closed in with a scrappy lap but could not overhaul the Dutchman, who arrived at the front after a chaotic qualifying sequence that unsettled the grid. Norris said he had done all he could, and that sometimes results go your way and sometimes they don’t.

The weekend has been challenging for McLaren, who are still hoping to wrap up the constructors’ title with seven rounds to spare. Norris’s Q3 troubles left the door open for Red Bull and Verstappen on a day when gusts and rain made life difficult for all drivers.

Piastri’s crash was not the only incident in a session that featured several near-misses and wall touches. Alex Albon, Nico Hulkenberg, Franco Colapinto, Oliver Bearman and Charles Leclerc were among those who also crashed during qualifying.

Inevitably, the weather and wind shaped the grid, with Carlos Sainz placing his Williams on the front row alongside Verstappen, while Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson qualified third and Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli fourth in an all-rookie second row. Lewis Hamilton admitted he was shocked to qualify only 12th after believing he would vie for pole.

Piastri, who won this race last year but had looked uncomfortable all weekend on the tight circuit, had also brushed the wall in practice on Friday. He acknowledged that the weekend’s conditions contributed to the error and left him with a tough remount for Sunday’s race. Still, he offered a pragmatic outlook, noting the car had been quick and expressing hope of making progress from ninth.

The session unfolded as teams weighed risk and reward on a circuit where overtaking is challenging and where the wind could destabilize even top cars. Piastri’s miscue underscored the margin between a championship bid and a difficult qualifying day, even as Verstappen set the pace for a pole that underscored Red Bull’s pace in Baku.