For the first half of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, George Russell was able to build a gap beyond 10 seconds to the chasing pack, as the Red Bulls of Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar struggled to pass Oscar Piastri's McLaren.
That picture altered abruptly when the safety car was deployed after Alex Albon's Williams became embedded in the wall at Turn 5 on lap 31. Russell's margin vanished as the safety car bunched up the field, and Verstappen seized the moment to pass Piastri at the restart.
