Max second in third free practice Baku

Published on 20 September 2025 by Florence Cobben

Max Verstappen has finished second in the third free practice of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. On the demanding street circuit of Baku, Max finished the closing session setting competitive fast laps. Lando Norris was the fastest man on track, more than two-tenths faster than the reigning four-time world champion.

The third free practice of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix commences peacefully. No matter which track Formula 1 takes to, the start of FP3 is mostly spent waiting in the pitbox. After seven minutes, it is Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) who makes the first appearance on track, but he quickly ducks back into his garage after his initial lap. Oliver Bearman (Haas) is the first to set a time, coming in at 1:47.3 on the hard tyres. After his lap he reports that it’s tricky to stay on the road as the powerful Baku winds buffet the cars.

With three quarters of an hour to go, the pace finally starts to quicken. Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris (both McLaren) make their first appearances. Norris’ first attempts earn him a 1:45.8 time. Teammate Piastri is a second faster in his first run. The track evolves over time, and the cars get quicker and quicker. After a brief sheet of rain and intense rain, the track is scattered with leaves everywhere, and the rubber from the yesterday’s training session has been washed off the track. Max bides his time and only after 23 minutes does he surface onto the track. He’s the last to set a time. On a set of soft tyres, the Dutchman notes a 1:43.4 time, good for second place. Max is four-tenths slower than Charles Leclerc (Ferrari), but the Monégasque made a mistake, losing valuable time. In the minutes after Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) and Piastri improve on Leclerc’s time, meaning halfway through the training Piastri leads the charge, ahead of Hamilton, Leclerc and Max.

A couple laps later, Max sets his second timed lap. In the first sector he notes a personal best, and in the second sector he sets the fastest time of the whole grid. It’s the last sector where the champion loses time, ending up in second, behind Leclerc. The Ferrari-driver had improved his time to 1:42.3 and Max has to concede two-tenths in this round. However, the Oracle Red Bull-driver still has his hat in the ring. With a blisteringly fast third run, including two purple sectors, Max sets the fastest time on the grid. At 1:41.7, he is six-tenths faster than the rest.

The closing phases of the training is dominated by qualifying runs. Everyone heads out one final time on soft tyres to prepare for qualifying. Alex Albon (Williams) starts his first run and notes a time good for second place. George Russell and Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) both also don’t manage to improve on Max’s time. Still, the champion is put on the back foot as Norris puts in an excellent performance and crosses the line half a second faster than Max’s time. The Dutchman also makes a final run. He aborts his first attempt, but the second lap is a marked improvement. He goes faster than his hitherto best time, but doesn’t manage to touch Norris’ lap. As the session concludes, the Brit is ahead of Max and Piastri in third.

Contest GP Azerbaijan: win a by Max Verstappen signed Red Bull Racing cap!

Results third free practice Azerbaijan: