Formula 1

Chaos in Baku: Piastri on the wall, Verstappen wins. Surprise Sainz on the podium

Caspian Grand Prix reopens the world championship

by Alex D'Agosta

21 September 2025

5' min read

Key points

Piastri's nightmare
Mercedes in Dueling and Rain Alarm
Gummies, Investigations and Dueling
Pit stop relief and The McLaren Nightmare

5' min read

There were surprises at once, for a Caspian Grand Prix that reopened the world championship, although in its unfolding, except for the first few twists and turns, it was once again dull and not very indicative of the forces in the field, as is the recurring tradition for city tracks.

Not surprisingly, the first event was the most shocking: unexpected withdrawal of the overall leader, Piastri, victory served on a silver platter to Max Verstappen. The second consecutive since 2024: a real positive moment for the reigning champion. Place of honour for George Russell thanks to an impeccable strategy. Podium also for Sainz who, despite a Williams in trouble for most of the season, could even aspire to more. To him, however, the public 'driver of the day' award because until a few weeks ago no one would have believed it. The now American-owned British team had not been on the podium since 2021.

Also very close to the top three was Antonelli who, at times, even seemed to be able to prevail over his British team-mate. Sad outcome for the eighth to ninth place of the Ferraris, who qualified badly and never really got into the fight with those who count due to a very evident lack of pace.

In any case, Mercedes enjoys the consistent result of the two drivers, such that it cancels out the gap it had with Ferrari in the prestigious constructors' championship so much so that, despite counting less than half the points of McLaren, with today's 290, Wolff's team surpasses the reds by four points, placing itself in second place temporarily. Between the second and fourth constructors there are now just 18 points: minus four from McLaren is the Maranello team and fourteen points further back is Red Bull.

Azerbaijan is a track that 'tricks' you with top speeds of almost 380 mph and that also exalts unexpected cars and drivers: so much so that the experienced Verstappen and Sainz used to start from the front row without having the best cars and, years ago, even Perez, a city track specialist, distinguished himself positively several times.

Despite a sky certainly not clear of clouds and weather conditions similar to yesterday (only the wind to disturb), the seventeenth Grand Prix of the season got underway immediately. The premises were clear: few sets of new tyres available for all the teams, a factor that heralded a race of management and great caution.

The start went smoothly: Max Verstappen held the lead, but the general caution was immediately betrayed.

Piastri's nightmare

The first and resounding twist came very early on. Oscar Piastri, the championship leader, went to the wall at turn five. The Australian, with the new chassis fitted after yesterday's free practice crash, paid dearly for his aggressiveness: cold tyres, wrong line and his untamable car turned him into a mere 'passenger'. A bitter retirement that throws away precious points in the duel with Lando Norris and ends a nightmarish weekend for the McLaren driver, who was already starting from the back and had lost positions at the start.

Piastri is the first excellent victim of the great tyre unknown: the scarcity of compounds, already reduced after yesterday's excessive consumption, made handling a decisive factor.

Mercedes in Dueling and Rain Alarm

It was also a complicated weekend for Charles Leclerc, who crashed into the wall in free practice and was forced to start from a difficult position, however, two places ahead of his team mate Lewis Hamilton. To think that Charles in Baku, a track that dismantles certainties and rebalances spirits with so many unexpected events, had seen him in pole position for the last four years. In 2025, on the other hand, he had an unlucky qualifying like Piastri: wall, damage and fifth row, leaving room for many youngsters.

Disaster also threatened for others. On lap five, immediately after the Australian's Yellow Flag restart, disaster came close between the two Silver Arrows. In the melee, it was Andrea Kimi Antonelli who came out on top, defending fourth place from Russell. His position is a remarkable one, finding himself just behind a surprising leading trio at the moment: Verstappen, Carlos Sainz and Liam Lawson.

Tension is cut with a knife. At the tenth came a message that could change the race: risk of rain on the way. If the water were to fall, the complications for the drivers, already short of tyres, would multiply, turning this grand prix into a real lottery.

Nothing more happens for a while until the pit stops. Tyre changes and Drs define the positions a little better reflecting the balance of power without upsetting positions.

Drugs, Investigations and Dueling

A full third of the way into the race, Verstappen's lead over Sainz stood at five seconds. Shortly afterwards, a long run by Hamilton at the braking of turn 1, without consequences, caused him to lose a few precious seconds on Norris and, above all, raised fears of a new safety car.

The most controversial episode comes with the contact between Albon and Colapinto. Albon, looking for a non-existent gap, damages the front wing of Colapinto, who still manages to return to the pits. The episode immediately ended up under investigation, and Albon was given a 10-second penalty, a quick decision that left no doubt as to the Thai driver's guilt.

Significant pit stops and the McLaren nightmare

Nearly two-thirds of the way through the race Lewis Hamilton pits for his stop, re-entering the track behind teammate Leclerc. The Ferrari, however, continues to show balance problems while the others take advantage.

The poor performance of the McLaren mechanics weighed like a boulder. When they called Lando Norris into the pits, after a very long stint on medium tyres that had maintained excellent performance, they messed up and made him suffer a very long stop, forcing the Englishman to re-enter in traffic and not in front of his direct rivals.

Shortly afterwards, however, came Mercedes' masterpiece in the pits, the decisive move of the entire race: out came George Russell in the 40th with a pit stop of just over two seconds, re-entering ahead of Sainz and Antonelli. Later Verstappen also comes in, last, but still able to maintain a comfortable lead.

Despite the (very light) rain signalled over the radio by the drivers at turn sixteen, the race ends without any further twists and turns. Max Verstappen consolidates his lead, taking advantage of another unexpected retirement of others, but it is Mercedes that is smiling: as mentioned, Russell's second place and Antonelli's performance bring very heavy points that overturn the constructors' standings. And Norris fails to 'capitalise' on Piastri's serious mistake, finishing only sixth and gaining a measly six points: nothing when driving the papaya single-seater that is undoubtedly the strongest in 2025.