Overview

• Oscar Piastri suffered a poor getaway, dropped to the back and slid into the barriers on the opening lap, retiring his McLaren.
• Stewards handed five-second jump-start penalties to Piastri and Fernando Alonso; with Piastri out, the sanction may carry over to Singapore.
• Max Verstappen started from pole and led the race after the early safety-car period triggered by the crash.
• Saturday’s qualifying set a record with six red flags in tricky wind and light rain, with Piastri crashing in Q3.
• McLaren replaced Piastri’s damaged survival cell overnight with FIA approval, allowing him to keep ninth on the grid, but his DNF scrubbed any chance to clinch the constructors’ title in Baku.