Abbi Pulling
F1 Academy champion on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

Going into the DRS zone and down into Turn Three, George Russell manages to get the slipstream into the braking zone and makes it look easy. The overlap speed [on Yuki Tsunoda] was enough for the Mercedes to take it with ease.

Jeremiah Kariuki: Piastri may look at Baku at the end of the season, and say, "this is the race that made me lose the Championship! Or the race, that almost lost the Championship". That will depend on how recovers from the nightmares of Baku.

Nulla Pax: Max should be smiling. This is such a psychological boost against both the McLaren boys.

George Russell positions his car on the outside of Yuki Tsunoda as we reach lap 10 of this Azerbaijan Grand Prix and by Turn Three, the Mercedes man is able to take the Red Bull's fifth place to return to where he started.

The Red Bull of Yuki Tsunoda is keeping the threat of George Russell at bay. But this battle is bringing Ferrari's Charles Leclerc's into play. Tsunoda and Russell are on the long main straight but the Mercedes still can't find a way past the Japanese driver.

Abbi Pulling
F1 Academy champion on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

I almost don't know where to look, there are battles everywhere up and down the field, it's absolutely hectic out there at the moment.

I imagine we are going to see Liam Lawson coming under a lot of pressure from Kimi Antonelli.

Image source, Getty Images

Mission complete for Lewis Hamilton. The Ferrari man has the slipstream on Isack Hadjar's Racing Bulls and with the aid of DRS, the Frenchman is overtaken by his idol and drops to P10.

Max Verstappen is over a second clear of Carlos Sainz and leading this Azerbaijan Grand Prix from pole position.

Fernando Alonso is in 11th but the Spaniard has been given a five-second time penalty for that jump start. The two-time world champion says sorry to his pit wall and says he reacted to Oscar Piastri.

George Russell is chasing down the Red Bull of Yuki Tsunoda. Will Turn 16 be the moment he passes the Japanese driver? DRS is open but he doesn't succeed.

Tom: The man who always remains calm has lost his head. On a track with two long DRS straights, trying a move around the outside of a chicane is crazy. He needs to reset for the next race

Lando Norris has picked off the Racing Bulls of Isack Hadjar, after the rookie has slipped up at Turn 16. The McLaren is now back in eighth place, as Charles Leclerc has moved to seventh.

Hadjar is now vulnerable to the other Ferrari of Lewis Hamilton but Frenchman hold on tight to P9 for now.

Andrew Benson
BBC F1 correspondent

For Oscar Piastri this has been a really poor weekend and he's really going to suffer for it.

From a neutral's point of view, this is brilliant because he was comfortable [at the top of the drivers' championship], and Lando Norris was comfortable in second place and Max Verstappen was a long way behind.

We expect now that Verstappen is going to make a big step forward in the championship, and for Norris let's wait and see how much ground he can make up.

Max Verstappen is weaving ahead of the Williams of Carlos Sainz and Liam Lawson. When will the Red Bull man make a move? The pack is waiting... now! Off the four-time world champion goes and he leads the field once again.

Charles Leclerc has caught Lando Norris snoozing before the braking zone and has nicked his P8 position. George Russell is another sleeper and is now down to sixth behind Yuki Tsunoda.

Abbi Pulling
F1 Academy champion on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

Oscar Piastri jumped the start, so that would have been an instant penalty and he stopped fully. Everyone then comes past him and by that point he's at the back trying to catch up to the pack.

Oscar Piastri has been noted by the stewards for a false start, but so has Fernando Alonso, who looked to have reacted to the McLarens early jump in his Aston Martin.

Safety car is neding. Let's go racing again...

Lewis Hamilton has moved up to 10th place from 12th, while Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc has gained a spot to ninth. The other McLaren of Lando Norris also lost position on the opening lap and is now running in eighth place, the Racing Bulls of Isack Hadjar taking his place in seventh.

There were actually multiple bumps during that opening lap, it's surprising Oscar Piastri is the only car that's retired already.

Abbi Pulling
F1 Academy champion on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

Very uncharacteristic from Oscar Piastri, it's one mistake after another.

We didn't even make it to lap two before the madness began. The pits is a hive of activity now as drivers switch tyres under the safety car. Esteban Ocon, who started in the pit lane, has dumped his hards for a set of mediums. Alex. Albon also jumped in for fresh mediums.

Max Verstappen leads, Carlos Sainz is second and Liam Lawson is third, but a replay of lights out shows Oscar Piastri had a jump start, which then unravelled his next few corners shortly after.

Abbi Pulling
F1 Academy champion on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

That is absolute disaster for Oscar Piastri, he didn't get the launch and I think he got involved with a lot of the cars in the back and he hit the wall.

Image source, Getty Images

Yellow flagpublished at 12:06 BST

12:06 BST

Lap 1/51

Oscar Piastri is climbing out of the car - the Australian is OK. He's locked up and gone straight on around Turn Six and straight into the wall. This title race has blown wide open.

Baku is on!

Max Verstappen leads out of Turn One with Carlos Sainz and Liam Lawson also staying on position.

But what has happened to Oscar Piastri? The championship front-runner has tumbled down the order and is running in last place.

And he's crashed!

The cars are making their way into position. The McLarens of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris are yellow medium runners.

Here we go...