Verstappen snatches FP3 top spot from Mercedes to lead Azerbaijan GP qualifying order

Max Verstappen clocked a 1m43.922s lap to top third and final practice for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku on Friday, splitting the two Mercedes cars of George Russell and Lewis Hamilton as Red Bull defied expectations heading into qualifying.

Verstappen’s effort came right at the death of the one-hour session as teams switched to qualifying simulation runs. The Dutchman benefitted from a significant slipstream down Baku’s 2km straight to leapfrog Russell, who had led for much of the latter stages on the softest tyre compound with a 1m44.021s lap. Hamilton, driving for Ferrari, snatched third from Mercedes junior Kimi Antonelli in the closing moments, with Charles Leclerc fifth and Alpine’s Pierre Gasly sixth.

The session was held in gustier conditions than expected, making the cars less predictable and complicating the slipstreaming choreography that is central to a fast lap around the Baku City Circuit. Verstappen himself reported his Red Bull was “jumping like a kangaroo” at one point before running deep into the Turn 15 runoff — one of several drivers to make use of the circuit’s generous escape roads.

Mercedes had looked ominously quick throughout Thursday’s running, and that pace carried into FP3. Antonelli briefly led the session midway through with a 1m45.046s on medium tyres, before Russell moved clear with a 1m44.177s and then improved to 1m44.021s on softs. The Silver Arrows’ hand was largely shown before Verstappen’s late intervention.

The session was briefly interrupted by a virtual safety car after a tree branch was swept onto the circuit by the wind. Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll suffered a more costly disruption, tagging the wall at Turn 1 and damaging his front-left suspension, forcing the Canadian to park his car early.

Russell may have had more in reserve — he locked up into Turn 1 and ran straight on at Turn 7 on what could have been a quicker lap, leaving the door open for Verstappen to claim the session’s benchmark. Whether that advantage carries into qualifying, where tow timing and track conditions will again be decisive, remains to be seen on a weekend where Mercedes appear to hold the structural edge.