Verstappen snatches pole from Sainz as Piastri crashes in dramatic Baku qualifying
After a record six red flags in Azerbaijan qualifying, Max Verstappen snatched pole from Carlos Sainz while Oscar Piastri crashed out.
Max Verstappen prevented Carlos Sainz from securing a surprise pole at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, while championship leader Oscar Piastri crashed out, News.Az reports citing the Formula 1.
The Red Bull driver claimed back-to-back pole positions after a thrilling Qualifying session which was impacted by an F1 record of six red flags, the final one having huge ramifications on the final order.
With Sainz, Liam Lawson and Isack Hadjar having set laps in Q3 and drops of rain starting to fall, Ferrari's Charles Leclerc hit the barrier at Turn 15 to bring out the red flag and prevent anyone else from finishing a lap time.
When the session resumed, Lando Norris and Verstappen were setting fastest sector times but dramatically, Piastri hit the barrier at Turn 3 to cause another stoppage with less than four minutes left on the clock.
With the green light back on, track conditions were far from their optimal and drivers scrambled to find the grip, with Verstappen setting a 1m 41.117s to deny Sainz pole by just under half a second.
Lawson improved with his second lap to remain third, ahead of the Mercedes cars of Kimi Antonelli and George Russell and the second Red Bull of Yuki Tsunoda.
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