Max Verstappen finished second at the Baku City Circuit, crossing the finish line just 192 thousandths of a second behind race winner George Russell. Starting eighth on the grid, carved through the field to secure his 134th career podium during a chaotic finish on the streets of Azerbaijan.
Verstappen Misses Baku Victory by Milliseconds
Overcoming Qualifying Gremlins and Medium Tyre Struggles
Handling issues on the medium tyres hampered his early pace during the grand prix.
“I struggled in the first part of the Grand Prix because the car wasn’t handling ideally on the medium tyres,” Verstappen said. “Nevertheless, I managed to work my way up to third place.”
Hunting Down Piastri in the Middle Stint
A strong restart behind Oscar Piastri allowed the reigning champion to hunt down the Australian and claim second position. Throughout the middle stint, the gap to leader George Russell fluctuated around one second.
Turbo Failure and a Chaotic Yellow-Flag Dash
The race climaxed on the final lap under yellow flags triggered by Valtteri Bottas spinning off course. Russell experienced a sudden power loss as his turbo failed to spool up fully, allowing Verstappen to slash the deficit down the straight.
“On the final lap, when the yellow flag was out because of Bottas’s spin, George lost power because his turbo wasn’t spooling up fully, as he told me earlier,” Verstappen explained. “So I was able to close the gap significantly as we approached the finish line, but unfortunately the chequered flag came out just a tiny bit too early.”
Brushing Barriers and Safeguarding Chassis Integrity
Verstappen brushed the barriers multiple times during his charge, prompting frantic radio checks with his garage to ensure chassis and telemetry data remained green. Ultimately, the team confirmed the car sustained no terminal damage.
Double Podium Celebration for Red Bull
Alongside Verstappen’s runner-up finish, Isack Hadjar secured third place to round out a successful weekend for the constructor. Verstappen praised the collective effort after overcoming early technical gremlins.
“That was a brilliant race from the whole team, with Isack in P3 as well,” Verstappen said. “After a difficult qualifying session with all my engine problems, we were able to put in a strong race – we can be really happy with that.”
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