Andrew Benson
BBC F1 correspondent

Image source, Getty Images

Red Bull's Max Verstappen took pole position ahead of Williams' Carlos Sainz after an extraordinary qualifying session featuring a record six red flags at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

McLaren's championship rivals Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris will start seventh and ninth, the Australian after crashing in the final part of qualifying and Norris failing to produce a good final lap.

Sainz was on course for pole position after being the fastest of three drivers to set a time before Ferrari's Charles Leclerc crashed early in the final part of qualifying.

Piastri then crashed shortly after the session was restarted, and Verstappen was the only driver able to improve on Sainz's time when the session restarted for the final time with just over three minutes remaining.

Racing Bulls' Liam Lawson will start third, with the lap time he set behind Sainz in the first part of the session.

Read the full report here

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Carlos Sainz and Liam Lawson posing for the top-three qualifying photo - Baku delivers again.

The blustery conditions in Azerbaijan have played their role in today's pole position fight and the forecast looks pretty similar for Sunday's 51-lap grand prix, so this could be an opportunity for an outsider to pop champagne on the podium.

And what of the drivers' championship? Oscar Piastri leads Lando Norris by 31 points but the pair are starting out of position at the back of the top 10. For McLaren to be crowned constructors' champions tomorrow, the team need to outscore second-placed Ferrari by nine points, while not being outscored by Mercedes by 12 points or more, and Red Bull by 33 points or more.

It's an early start on Sunday, so come back and join us for race build-up from 11:00 BST.

Lights out is at 12:00 BST.

See you tomorrow!

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If you're feeling a bit dazed and confused after qualifying and have a question about the various red flags/yellow flags/tyre options, then send your thoughts to Andrew Benson using the link here.

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Ferrari's Charles Leclerc qualified in 10th after crashing. He told Sky Sports: "I think Lewis [Hamilton] was a bit more on the pace straight away and more consistent than I've been during the weekend. I've been massively struggling, which normally I come to Baku and everything flows pretty naturally.

"This year unfortunately it was not the case, I don't understand why and in qualifying I changed a lot of the car to try and change the feeling.

"The feeling was getting better until we actually put the medium tyres on and then everything went. It was very difficult when we put on the medium tyres.

"For some reason yesterday it felt like the better tyre on our car, but today it felt we could never quite reach the right window of the tyres and made it very tricky."

On the race: "There is opportunity but it's going to be tough to come back in the front anyway, but there's opportunity and I will look forward and try to have a great Sunday with a disappointing Saturday.

"Normally it's been the other way round when I've come here, so I'm looking forward to turning this situation around."

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McLaren's Lando Norris will start in P7 tomorrow, he told Sky Sports: "[On the bump on Turn 15] I don't know honestly, I don't have the delta so I don't know how much I lost, two-tenths maybe, so a couple of positions but not 1.1 seconds to Max.

"I think just a mistake from my side and our side to who had the pit lane first.

"There could have been a yellow flag further back and we could have looked like the heroes and everyone else could have looked like losers, now I kind of look like a loser than a hero.

"It's the price you pay around here and the risk you've got to take. It was still spitting a little bit so I think anyone further back just had more grip.

"It was a decision that didn't work out in the end, so something we will review and try and do better next time."

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Championship leader Oscar Piastri crashed in Q3. He told Sky Sports: "I think I just braked a little bit late, I've not seen any data or anything but it's normally what happens when you end up locking a brake, it's a bit late.

"It's disappointing obviously, I thought the car was in a good place. The first two corners were really good but maybe I just tried a little bit too much or the rain has been around, so at some points in that lap it felt a little bit more tricky.

"I don't know if that was one of them necessarily, ultimately I need to go and have a look. I think it was a case of trying a little bit too hard."

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If you're just joining us, hello! It was a very chaotic qualifying session in Azerbaijan, with six red flags in total and the likes of Charles Leclerc, four-time consecutive polesitter in Baku - and title leader Oscar Piastri crashing out.

Lewis Hamilton saw his pole ambitions dashed with a Q2 knockout, while Lando Norris couldn't capatlise on his team-mate's mishap and will start down in seventh place.

Max Verstappen will be favourite to convert his pole into another win, but what can Carlos Sainz in P2 and Liam Lawson in P3 do tomorrow? Will we see either one of them keep hold of their podium position?

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Racing Bull’s Liam Lawson, who starts third on the grid: "Honestly I can’t even remember what happened it was so busy, obviously it’s still raining now. It was very busy, I said it would be but I didn’t expect it to be like that.

"The car has been good all weekend and when it needed to be in qualifying, it was good and so a massive thanks to the guys and girls, the team has been amazing so far, but obviously tomorrow is the important day."

If it was difficult to improve on that last lap: "It’s always sketchy because you always see the rain coming on your visor and you can feel it.

"You can kind of see the gloss on the track but because the tyres are so warm you have grip, so you’re trying to fight your brain and not back off and keep pushing, it’s definitely tricky."

On the race tomorrow: "It’s going to be a very hard race for sure, a great starting position, but obviously we’re aware of who we are fighting around us and that is what we will be focused on."

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Williams' Carlos Sainz, who will start on the front row in P2: "Very happy, We've nailed the qualifying today. Every time being on the right tyre at the right time and putting together some very strong laps.

"Of course the moment that a top car put a lap together we were always going to be those four or five tenths behind, but it was only one of them, and it was Max - no surprise. For the rest, we managed to beat them. We're in P2, which is great news.

"I've been putting good laps together this year in qualifying; it hasn't been an issue or my weakness at all. Again we proved that there is speed in this car and delivering in qualifying when it counts.

"Unfortunately, the year in races and in points is not going the way we want but as long as the speed is there, like today proves, the good races will come and I'm not worried."

On Sunday's race: "I'm going to give it my all to give Williams a first podium. We'll see."

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Red Bull's Max Verstappen, who starts on pole position in Baku: "A long qualifying to be honest with so many red flags so it was very difficult to basically get your lap together.

"Most of the time your tyres are not really ready for it or again a red flag, especially with Q3 with a bit of rain, it was a very difficult session.

"In the final lap you just have to send it, I wasn’t even on the best tyres I wanted but because of the red flags, you basically run out of tyres.

"I’m very happy so far with how the weekend has gone because from FP1 we were not too bad and we just kept on improving a tiny amount and then we were there in qualifying and that is when it matters."

On the car: "We definitely were in there for pole, Q3 is always a bit messy for everyone, but I’m just happy as since Monza we are doing a better job and I hope we can continue in that way."

On the race: "It’s a long race, you want to have a good start but even then we just need to do our own race and look after our tyres.

"It’s still quite tough on our tyres around here because of the softer compounds and then we will see what happens."

Azerbaijan is Max Verstappen's sixth pole position of the 2025 season, the most of any driver this year. It's probably too late in day to trouble the McLarens for the title but he can certainly still challenge Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris for race victories.

Image source, Getty Images

Abbi Pulling
F1 Academy champion on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

Lando Norris didn't manage to put it in when it mattered and that would have made a huge difference going into tomorrow in the drivers' championship.

11. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)

12. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)

13. Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber)

14. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)

15. Oliver Bearman (Haas)

16. Franco Colapinto (Alpine)

17. Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber)

18. Esteban Ocon (Haas)

19. Pierre Gasly (Alpine)

20. Alex Albon (Williams)

1, Max Verstappen (Red Bull) - 1:41.117

2. Carlos Sainz (Williams)

3. Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls)

4. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)

5. George Russell (Mercedes)

6. Yuki Tsunoda (Red Bull)

7. Lando Norris (McLaren)

8. Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls)

9. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)

10. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

Ben Edwards
F1 commentator on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

Max Verstappen's first career pole position in Baku, six poles this year now, so impressive.

Lando Norris couldn't take advantage of team-mate Oscar Piastri's mistake in Q3. The Briton will only be starting two places higher than the Australian in P7, behind the Red Bull of Yuki Tsunoda in sixth and the two Mercedes of George Russell in fifth and Kimi Antonelli in an excellent P4.

George Russell is next to cross the line but even his Mercedes can't beat the Williams of Carlos Sainz. Liam Lawson is on the second row in third as Max Verstappen goes onto pole position!

George Russell overtook Carlos Sainz on the outide as the pair came out of the pits. The Spaniard has made sure to flag this to his Williams pit wall.

Lando Norris is going for his flyer but his car is twitching as light rain comes back into play. He reaches the end of the lap and brushes the wall! The Mclaren only goes into second place!

Andrew Benson
BBC F1 correspondent

If more than one driver fails to set a time in Q2 or Q3, they will be arranged in the following order.

Any driver who attempted to set a qualifying time by starting a flying lap is the first thing, so they all comply with that.

The order is then determined in accordance to the order they were classified in the previous period of the relevant qualifying, so the Q2 order if they don't get a time in.