By: Azerbaijan GP winner George Russell experienced two very different sides to the event. From free practice onwards, the Briton assumed the role of absolute dominator. It suited him perfectly, at least until beyond the halfway point of Saturday’s race, when the Safety Car appeared.
The margin he was able to put over his rivals was enormous. He held an advantage of more than eight tenths over Ferrari and McLaren. In the race, he then pulled clear in the early stages of the GP thanks to extraordinarily competitive and consistent pace, but also the battles unfolding among the pack behind him.
Verstappen nearly ruined Russell’s weekend
Then came the Safety Car and, with the field bunched up, George Russell could no longer pull away. So much so that Verstappen came close to spoiling what had been an almost perfect weekend for the team-mate of championship leader Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who finished fifth in Baku and still leads the standings by 66 points.
Russell came close to going from absolute dominator to narrowly avoiding a disastrous second place. The 196-millisecond gap between George and Max is the smallest margin ever recorded at the finish between first and second place over the past 20 years. To find a smaller one, we must go back to 2002, when, in the much-discussed Austrian GP, Barrichello suddenly slowed to allow Michael Schumacher to pass him on the finish line and take second place. The gap then was 182 milliseconds.
Possible causes
What contributed to this scenario? He was probably close to being betrayed by the layout of the Baku circuit. In the first part of the race, Russell was able to dictate the pace, immediately pulling away from the pack and taking advantage of the battles between the drivers. In the second stint, however, Verstappen was always able to remain in his slipstream and, once the Dutchman got within overtake mode range, it became impossible for the Briton to pull away. The second theory concerns the Soft tyres, which may have been less effective on George’s car than on the Dutchman’s. It may also have been a combination of the two factors.
We nevertheless believe it was being in the W17’s slipstream that made the four-time Red Bull champion so dangerous. Antonelli provided supporting evidence: despite having the incredible Mercedes at his disposal, he struggled greatly to dispatch slower rivals when he was caught in a DRS train during the opening stages. Later on, however, he always made overtakes with disarming ease whenever he found himself in a one-on-one battle.
Cover photo by Finlay Williams / WHYOUT Images
Interior photo by Peter Kiss / WHYOUT Images
All the news, photos, weather, session times and times from the Azerbaijan GP 2026
