Verstappen wins at Baku as McLaren fails to make podium

Max Verstappen secured a second consecutive victory at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on Sunday. At the same time, McLaren faced a rare setback as they failed to secure a podium finish for the first time this season.

Mercedes’ George Russell finished 14 seconds later to claim a second-place finish, while Carlos Sainz Jr. gave Williams their first podium appearance of the season. 

Starting from pole, Verstappen maintained an assertive pace, managing his tires effectively throughout, winning the fastest lap, and converting his pole into a smooth win.

This marked Verstappen’s fourth victory of the season and was a sign of Red Bull’s improved race car performance since the summer break, particularly beneficial on a circuit like Baku with its long straights and tight corners.

Verstappen commented positively on the weekend, describing his car’s performance as “beautiful” and expressing cautious optimism for the upcoming races, hinting that the team’s progress could be sustained or even improved.

McLaren, despite leading the Constructors’ Championship with their drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, failed to make the most of a critical opportunity following Piastri’s early exit. 

Piastri, who leads the drivers’ standings, suffered a disastrous first lap after jumping the start and eventually crashed out attempting a bold overtaking maneuver. This error ended his race prematurely and was his first retirement in 45 races, a major blow to his title challenge.

Lando Norris, who qualified seventh, aimed to make up ground on his teammate but was held back by race incidents and strategy issues.

Although McLaren opted for a late pit stop to give Norris fresher tires for the final stint, a slow pit stop delayed his progress.

Norris struggled to overtake competitors such as Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda and ultimately finished in seventh place, the same position he started, missing the chance to gain crucial points and tighten the championship gap on Piastri.

This marked the first race of the season where McLaren failed to get a driver on the podium, stalling their hopes to secure the Constructors’ Championship early.

The weekend exposed some vulnerabilities in McLaren’s race execution and pit stop reliability that they will need to address as the championship enters its critical phase.