
Oscar Piastri’s title charge survived a first-lap crash at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix without major damage as rival Lando Norris could finish only seventh.
A second crash of the weekend for Piastri ended his 34-race streak of finishing a Grand Prix within five corners and threw the door wide open for McLaren team-mate Norris to make major inroads into his championship lead.
But Norris started sluggishly and overtaking was at a premium during the 51-lap on Baku’s windy streets, meaning he could only take six points out of Piastri’s title lead which stands at 25 with seven rounds remaining.
Pole-sitter Max Verstappen breezed to a commanding lights-to-flag victory, blasting away from the line and winning by 14 seconds to claim successive victories and close within 69 points of Piastri.
F1 driver standings after Azerbaijan GP
4. George Russell (Mercedes) – 212 points
5. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) – 165 points
7. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) – 78 points
8. Alex Albon (Williams) – 70 points
9. Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls) – 39 points
10. Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber) - 37 points
11. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) – 32 points
12. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) – 30 points
13. Esteban Ocon (Haas) – 28 points
14. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) – 20 points
15. Carlos Sainz (Williams) – 31 points
16. Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) – 30 points
17. Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber) – 18 points
18. Ollie Bearman (Haas) – 16 points
20. Franco Colapinto (Alpine) – 0 points
21. Jack Doohan (Alpine) – 0 points
F1 constructor standings after Azerbaijan GP
1. McLaren - 623 points
2. Mercedes - 290 points
3. Ferrari - 286 points
4. Red Bull - 272 points
5. Williams - 101 points
6. Racing Bulls - 72 points
7. Aston Martin - 62 points
8. Sauber - 55 points
9. Haas - 44 points
10. Alpine - 20 points
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