2025 F1 Azerbaijan GP: Preview and Predictions

The 2025 F1 Azerbaijan GP will mark the beginning of the last third of the season as the circus moves on from Europe. The track at Baku has been home to some very interesting races ever since it was first added to the calendar in 2015.

Since then, there have been quite a few races where stuff like safety cars and late-race stoppages have been a key factor in final results. The races in the ground effect era have not been as good, except for the close battle between Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri last season, there haven't been many memorable ones.

With that being said, we head to the race with the drivers' championship still at stake. What can we expect from the F1 Azerbaijan GP? Let's take a look.

2025 F1 Azerbaijan GP: Preview

Key Storylines

#1 The hangover of the team order

McLaren swapping the drivers' positions is something that led to conflicting reactions from different parts of the F1 fandom. While the drivers and the team have tried to brush it off, it does appear that there is an element of "opening a can of worms" here.

The title battle heads to the F1 Azerbaijan GP, and it would be interesting to see if there's a moment that McLaren feels is worth jumping in for.

#2 Max Verstappen a potential title contender?

Max Verstappen's win in Monza was not only a result of the low downforce wing but also the new floor that seems to have brought the Dutch driver added confidence in the car. He's closed the gap to Oscar Piastri by 3 points in the last two races, which is admittedly not much, and 8 races to cover a 94-point deficit is too much.

But if the Red Bull is fast around Baku, the Verstappen camp might believe that something could be on the table.

#3 Toto Wolff vs His Drivers

Toto Wolff's comments after the Italian GP were a bit strange, as this was probably the first time ever we saw him being critical of both his drivers. It did come as a surprise, as George Russell, as usual, extracted whatever was on the table with the Mercedes, while Kimi Antonelli is still learning.

At the same time, that contract extension is yet to come, it seems, and it is getting delayed. Is there more to it than what meets the eye at Mercedes? All is not well, that's for sure, and the F1 Azerbaijan GP might offer a glimpse into what's going on at the house that Toto Wolff has built.

Form Guide

In Form

Gabriel Bortoleto is on a bit of a run at Sauber, where he's slowly starting to overshadow Nico Hulkenberg. The German has not been comfortable with the car and has been unable to extract the best from it recently in qualifying.

This has helped the Brazilian to truly stamp his authority on Sauber. He might prove to be the biggest emerging star of the season if this continues.

Out of Form

It's the same story of Max Verstappen's teammates being made to look like a lesser version of themselves alongside him, and now Yuki Tsunoda is going through that. It's become a never-ending story, and we're going through the same news cycle of the media and the team speculating if the Dutch driver's teammate deserves to be at Red Bull or if they want another alternative.

Driver with the biggest spotlight

Lando Norris comes to the F1 Azerbaijan GP on the back of a strange race in Monza, where he did close the gap to Oscar Piastri, but not by much. Norris has often been quite good around Baku, and he would be hoping to pick up another win over the Australian as he tries to build some momentum.

2025 F1 Azerbaijan GP: Predictions

Who wins the race?

Having a softer compound for the F1 Azerbaijan GP this season, compared to what we had last year, means that it brings the rear tire into the equation. That's one area where McLaren excels over everyone else, and hence we could potentially see the team have a stronger advantage over the field.

When it comes to picking the drivers, it's once again going to be marginal between Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris this weekend, but we're going with the Brit. Even though the Australian won here last season, Lando has had inherently more pace than his teammates at this track.

Biggest surprise of the weekend? (Team)

Keep an eye on Charles Leclerc this weekend. The Ferrari driver has the ability to surprise and pull the rabbit out of the hat at the F1 Azerbaijan GP. He's been on pole position at this track for the last 4 years, and it might be a bit too early to count him out.

Biggest surprise of the weekend? (Driver)

Williams should be one of the teams that ends up having a good run here. The traction zone is where the lap time is essentially made, and that's where the car appears to work quite well.

Biggest disappointment of the weekend? (Team)

Baku isn't one of Lewis Hamilton's best tracks in general. He's had a rough time even keeping teammates like Nico Rosberg and Valtteri Bottas behind him, and this time around, he has Charles Leclerc in the other car. The 2025 F1 Azerbaijan GP might not look as good for the Brit, as Leclerc in the other car is hard to match on this track.

Biggest disappointment of the weekend? (Driver)

After the highs of Baku, this might not be the best one for Red Bull. This isn't one of Max Verstappen's best tracks on the calendar anyway, and while the car did well around Monaco, it was still a handful in Zandvoort, and a part of it might be a factor here as well.