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Saajan Jogia is a motorsport and automotive writer with over ten years of experience. His passion for cars and motorcycles has been a driving force behind his evolution as a writer. He has extensively covered Formula 1, MotoGP, IndyCar, NASCAR, WEC, and technology for publications including Sports Illustrated, The Sporting News, Newsweek, and Men’s Journal.

Saajan Jogia

Sports Contributing Writer

🎙️ Voice is AI-generated. Inconsistencies may occur.

Saturday’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix qualifying at the Baku City Street Circuit turned out to be a chaotic session, given its record-breaking six red flags, more than any previous Formula One qualifying round.

Adding to the chaos were a number of yellow flags, caused by drivers veering into the run-off areas, while the rain towards the end of the session added to the uncertainty. At the end, Max Verstappen secured pole position, followed by Williams driver Carlos Sainz in P2, and Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson in P3.

Qualifying started with Alex Albon’s crash, followed by Franco Colapinto, Oliver Bearman, and even Nico Hulkenberg, who managed to rejoin in Q1. Several high-profile names also fell prey to the tight street circuit, such as Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri. Lando Norris also brushed against the wall, compromising his fast run in Q3.

Related: Alex Albon Suffers Disastrous Baku Qualifying with Q1 Exit

Albon’s crash was the first red flag of the session in Q1, followed by Hulkenberg and Colapinto’s crash, totaling three red flags. As the session progressed to Q2, the incident involving Bearman triggered the fourth red flag. Then, in Q3, a surprise crash by Leclerc marked the fifth red flag, followed by the sixth when Piastri crashed his MCL39 F1 car.

Drivers battled for grip, while gusts of wind made matters worse for them. Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, who topped the second practice session on Friday, was eliminated in Q2, adding to the uncertainty of the event. Hamilton stated that Ferrari took a “direction” with the car that looked best on paper, but it ended up knocking him out of Q2.

Related: Lewis Hamilton Faces Sudden Setback at Baku After ‘Positive’ Practice Session

The qualifying session exceeded a duration of 100 minutes, a step away from the usual 60 minutes. It proved to be stressful for teams and drivers, as they constantly reset strategies while the session went through twists and turns. Notably, the event snatched the record from the 2024 Sao Paulo GP qualifying, which was affected by five red flags.

Related: Oscar Piastri Crashes out of Azerbaijan GP Qualifying After Major Error

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