George Russell set the pace during both FP1 and FP2 on Thursday at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, prompting the official Formula 1 website to wonder if he is already out of striking distance for Friday’s qualifying session.
But can he roll Thursday’s command performance into the qualifying hour, or will one of his rivals catch him for pole position at the difficult Baku City Circuit?
Qualifying gets underway at 8:00 a.m. Eastern on Friday morning, so check back throughout the session to see how it unfolds.
And remember, the best way to follow all the action is through the new SB Nation app! The new game chat feature loads and runs so smoothly, making it a fantastic experience during qualifying sessions and races. Download the SB Nation app now for iOS or Android and join our F1 community (via the Communities page) to see the new live game chat for qualifying on Friday, and the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on Sunday.
Here is the qualifying thread for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Azerbaijan GP provisional starting grid
Here is the provisional starting grid for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, which will be filled in throughout the qualifying session:
| Row | Position | Driver | Team | Position | Driver | Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Row 1 | 1 | George Russell | Mercedes | 2 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari |
| Row 2 | 3 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 4 | Isack Hadjar | Red Bull |
| Row 3 | 5 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 6 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari |
| Row 4 | 7 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 8 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull |
| Row 5 | 9 | Carlos Sainz | Williams | 10 | Franco Colapinto | Alpine |
| Row 6 | 11 | Oliver Bearman | Haas | 12 | Liam Lawson | VCARB |
| Row 7 | 13 | Alexander Albon | Williams | 14 | Esteban Ocon | Haas |
| Row 8 | 15 | Arvid Lindblad | VCARB | 16 | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes |
| Row 9 | 17 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Audi | 18 | Nico Hülkenberg | Audi |
| Row 10 | 19 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 20 | Sergio Pérez | Cadillac |
| Row 11 | 21 | Valtteri Bottas | Cadillac | 22 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin |
Azerbaijan Grand Prix qualifying
Here is how the qualifying hour unfolded. All updates are in Eastern time.
Q3
9:06: It’s Russell. Two absolutely incredible laps at the end to take pole. With Antonelli down in P16 tomorrow, this might be his best — last? — chance to truly put the pressure on his teammate in the Drivers’ Championship standings.
He took pole by just over 0.800 seconds over Leclerc. A commanding performance.
9:04: Russell improves his time, gets in at 1:42.526. He might have put this out of reach.
9:03: One minute to go.
9:02: Leclerc gets to P2, Gasly in P6. Under three minutes to go in Baku.
9:01: Hadjar jumps to P3. Russell behind him, and he jumps to provisional pole ahead of the McLarens.
8:57: Norris is purple through sectors one and two to jump to P1, but Piastri nips him with a 1:43.571. Norris 0.101 behind him in P2.
Provisional papaya front row.
8:56: Russell sets the benchmark with a 1:43.713.
8:54:
Hilarious moment from Norris and Will Joseph.
Norris: “So I’m doing out, warm up, push. Then a very quick turnaround?”
Joseph: “Yes. Or that’s what we want people to believe…”
Norris: “Yes … or am I?”
Joseph: “Or are you?”
8:46: Russell, Verstappen, Leclerc, Piastri, Hadjar, Norris, Hamilton, Gasly, Sainz, and Colapinto are the ten drivers through to Q3, in that order. Huge for Williams with their big upgrade package this week.
Q2
8:46: Colapinto takes the final spot in Q3. Bearman, Lawson, Albon, Ocon, Lindblad, and Antonelli are the six drivers eliminated in Q2.
8:43: Verstappen slots into P2, 0.020 behind Russell. Lawson is the first driver eliminated.
8:42: Gasly just delivered the fastest third sector of the session, and jumps up to P7.
8:36: Early laps are in here in Q2. Russell are at the top of the pile, followed by Leclerc, Norris, Piastri, and Hamilton in the top five. Lawson, Lindblad, Bearman, Gasly, Colapinto, and Antonelli in the drop zone.
8:34: Hadjar reports that it is “gusty” into Turn 4.
8:33: Q2 is underway.
8:27: Russell, Verstappen, Hadjar, Hamilton, Leclerc, Gasly, Norris, Piastri, Albon, Ocon, Sainz, Colapinto, Bearman, Lindblad, Antonelli, and Lawson are the 16 through to Q2, in that order. Antonelli is out, so he will line up in P16.
Q1
8:26: Bortoleto, Hülkenberg, Alonso, Pérez, Bottas, and Stroll are the six eliminated at the end of Q1. Antonelli advances in P15, but will line up in P16 as he will not take part in Q2.
8:23: Bortoleto and Hulkenberg are out. As are Alonso and Perez.
8:21: “Why can’t we fix it?”
8:18: Albon jumps to P15, dropping Bearman into the elimination zone.
8:18: Under four minutes to go in Q1. Pérez, Gasly, Alonso, Bottas, Stroll, and Albon in the drop zone. Hülkenberg the driver at risk, sitting in P16.
8:17: Replays show Antonelli hitting the wall at the apex of Turn 1, the left-hander coming out of the main straight.
8:15: Antonelli has been told to stop the car. The Drivers’ Championship leader will start at the back of the field tomorrow.
8:14: Antonelli has hit the wall! His left front is damaged, and he might have suspension damage.
8:14: With eight minutes left in Q1 Hülkenberg, Gasly, Alonso, Bottas, Stroll, and Albon are the six drivers in the drop zone.
8:12: Hadjar jumps to P1 with a 1:44.702, and Hamilton slots in behind him just 0.155 seconds off Hadjar’s pace.
8:11: Verstappen goes P1 with a 1:45.168.
8:09: First times are in and … Pérez is in P1 ahead of Colapinto, Lindblad, Lawson, Bearman, Gasly, Bottas, Alonso, and Hülkenberg.
8:05: Green light in Baku and Bottas leads the drivers out to the track.
8:02: Qualifying will begin at 4:04 p.m. local time, or 8:04 a.m. Eastern.
7:59: And … the start of qualifying has been delayed. No start time yet from race control.
7:53: Russell, Verstappen, and Antonelli the three drivers predicted for pole position during the pre-qualifying show.
7:52: Commentators on the pre-qualifying show raising the spectre of traffic here in qualifying. Tire preparation is also going to be critical during this session.
What happened in FP3?
In FP3, one of Russell’s rivals fought back.
None other than Max Verstappen topped the timing sheets during the third and final hour of practice. Here are the results from FP3: