F1 Azerbaijan GP live updates: Baku qualifying latest as Charles Leclerc takes pole (2024)

Formula One concludes its goodbye to Europe for the season with round 17 and the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku. Here is how to watch on Sunday:

• Race start: noon UK / 7 a.m. ET
• Watch: Sky Sports (UK), ESPN (US)

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Oscar Piastri is set for another battle with the Ferraris after their battle at Monza. But when asked which team has the faster car at Baku, the McLaren driver said it’s been relatively even throughout the weekend. The track has continued to evolve and become faster as the drivers laid down rubber session after session.

Here's what Piastri had to say:

💬 “Through all of practice, it looked very tight between us, Ferrari, Mercedes and Red Bull. To be honest, I was a bit surprised Red Bull weren’t a bit further up at the end of Q3, but I think our race pace looked good yesterday but nowadays, the top four teams are so close in race pace that qualifying often makes a massive difference. So I’ve got confidence that our car will be quick.

💬“I think there’s definitely seven other cars out on the track that are certainly not any slower.”

Baku’s reputation for unpredictable races led the promoters to coin the term ‘Baku syndrome’ last year. One-third of the podium finishers in Baku have come from outside the top five of the grid, while Daniel Ricciardo won from as far back as P10 in 2017.

Lando Norris was less optimistic about his chances from P17, even though McLaren's race pace on Friday was strong:

💬 “I don’t think it’s going to be easy. Following is pretty much impossible around here, and overtaking is a lot worse than everyone thinks. I hope I’m wrong, of course, and there’s plenty of chances. But I’m not expecting so.”

Considering Ferrari’s fluctuating year-to-year form, winning four straight pole positions around a track as challenging as Baku is an impressive feat for Leclerc.

We know how good he is as a qualifying specialist, but this was a special lap, even by Leclerc’s high standards. “No chance for anyone else,” said his race engineer, Bryan Bozzi. “That was beautiful.”

Red Bull has the most Azerbaijan GP wins of any constructor — all of them have come from starting below the front row.

On Sunday, Sergio Pérez and Max Verstappen line up fourth and sixth, respectively.

With his terrific pole-clinching lap on Saturday, Leclerc matched a Ferrari legend: Leclerc became the second Ferrari driver to take four consecutive poles at one venue.

Michael Schumacher did it at Barcelona, Suzuka and Sepang.

The stewards have spoken:

• Williams is fined €5,000 for releasing Alex Albon from the pits with an airbox still attached to his car in Q3.
• Pierre Gasly is disqualified from qualifying for his car exceeding the fuel mass flow limit. He'll start from the back on Sunday.

Lando Norris’s hopes of making further inroads into Max Verstappen’s Formula One championship lead took a blow on Saturday after qualifying a lowly 17th for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

A yellow flag shown on Norris’s final lap in the opening stage of qualifying forced him to slow down before he eventually abandoned the effort and returned to the pits.

However, the nature of the yellow flag also left McLaren seeking clarification from the FIA as to why it was shown. It was costly for Norris and, potentially, his championship hopes as Verstappen bids to widen the 62-point gap on Sunday from sixth on the grid.

Read on to learn why the flag was thrown and why McLaren had an issue with it...

FIA F1 technical delegate Jo March found that Gasly's car "exceeded the instantaneous fuel mass flow" during qualifying and has referred the matter to the stewards.

If the breach is confirmed, Gasly will line up at the back of the field on Sunday.

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella to Sky Sports:

💬 “We were in conversation with the FIA as to why that happened because the yellow flag isn’t necessary when it’s just a slow car, it’s off-line,” Stella said. “Everyone tries their best, I’m sure. This time, there was a situation which ideally, and I think by the regulations, shouldn’t have happened. We paid the price."

For the fourth consecutive year, Charles Leclerc secures pole position for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. He beat out Oscar Piastri by 0.3 seconds.

For much of Q3, it looked like a Ferrari front-row lockout, but the McLaren driver spoiled it with his final flying lap, edging out Carlos Sainz.

Read on below for our full qualifying report.

A mighty, mighty performance from Charles Leclerc in qualifying. The Ferrari is good in a straight line and slow-speed corners, meaning Baku was always going to be a decent track. Yet it takes something special from the driver to really make the difference — and that’s exactly what Leclerc did.

It’s the fourth year in a row that Leclerc has claimed pole in Baku, although he is yet to win at this track. Tomorrow could be the day he ends that drought.

Oscar Piastri deserves a lot of credit for taking second for McLaren. The team hasn’t been at its usual strength so far this weekend, but Piastri was giving it everything on that lap.

Max Verstappen is down in sixth for Red Bull after a tricky Q3, he was never really on the pace. Sergio Pérez will lead Red Bull’s efforts from P4. It’s the first time since Miami last year that he has out-qualified Verstappen.

The stewards have noted Alex Albon's car for an "unsafe release" after he had to stop and pull the airbox fan off his car. A very strange incident, and a big error by Williams. It'll be investigated by the stewards after the session.