Nine Thousandths: Norris Tops Baku’s Red-Flagged Chaos

Baku bites early: Norris tops a red‑flagged Q1 as big names tumble

The walls won the opening round in Baku. A scrappy, stop‑start Q1 set the tone for Azerbaijan Grand Prix qualifying, with three red flags, a handful of bruised egos, and a McLaren on top. Lando Norris led the session with a 1:41.322, narrowly ahead of Max Verstappen by nine thousandths, in a segment that left Alpine bruised and a few heavy hitters sweating.

The chaos started almost immediately. With everyone queueing for a draft on Baku’s long straights, Alex Albon clipped the wall and parked his Williams, forcing the first red flag before most had logged a serious banker. Once the mess was cleared, the rush to get a lap in turned frantic.

That wasn’t ideal for Oscar Piastri, who’d yet to set a time when the first stoppage hit. The McLaren driver kept his nerve on the restart and hustled through, but the pressure was real. Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli had an even sharper ride: a deleted lap for track limits and a possible yellow‑flag infringement hanging over him, though he still squeezed into Q2.

Then came the next interruption. Lewis Hamilton briefly went fastest in his Ferrari, but the session was red‑flagged for Nico Hülkenberg, who’d scattered debris after a trip down an escape road. The Sauber returned for a front wing change and tried to salvage it, while his teammate Gabriel Bortoleto was noted for a yellow‑flag moment as well.

The final sting arrived late. Pierre Gasly ran off for Alpine, and in the commotion his teammate Franco Colapinto crashed just behind him. Both were out, and so was Alpine—double elimination in Q1 on a day when track position and timing were everything.

Through the noise, a few storylines popped. Norris looked sharp and composed, Verstappen his usual menace, and Ferrari’s one‑two punch of Charles Leclerc and George Russell sat comfortably in the top four. Isack Hadjar continued to impress for Racing Bulls with P5, the kind of tidy street‑track lap that makes team bosses sit up. Aston Martin sent both cars through, and Oliver Bearman kept Haas in the fight with a neat P15.

On the flip side, Esteban Ocon couldn’t match Bearman and was punted out in P18. Alpine will need a reset after that double Q1 exit, Sauber likewise with Hülkenberg down in 17th, and Williams took the early hit with Albon’s crash offset only slightly by Carlos Sainz dragging the other car into 14th.

Q2 and Q3 will bring the usual Baku gamesmanship—tow trains, hot tires, cooler heads. If the first 18 minutes were a preview, expect more elbows out and very little margin for error. One to watch: whether Antonelli’s noted yellow‑flag moment draws the stewards’ ire later.