Azerbaijan GP Results: Oscar Piastri Wins In Baku After Intense Charles Leclerc Battle

Oscar Piastri won the 2024 Azerbaijan Grand Prix after an intense race. Joining the McLaren driver with the podium celebrations were Charles Leclerc and George Russell who crossed the line in second and third positions, respectively.

A huge moment to McLaren as they overtake Red Bull in the Constructors' Standings to take the lead.

What happened during the 2024 Azerbaijan Grand Prix?

Lap 1: A clean start to the race with Charles Leclerc, who started from the pole position, maintaining his lead into Turn 1. The Red Bull's of Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen both gain a position at the start.

Lap 1: Lando Norris, who started from 15th, is already up to 13th as he aims to make his way through the pack as soon as possible. Meanwhile, Lance Stroll, who had brief contact with Yuki Tsunoda at the start has been forced to return to the pits after suffering from a puncture.

Lap 2: DRS is enabled and Oscar Piastri is not letting Charles Leclerc get too far away just yet. He is within DRS range of the Monegasque driver.

Lap 3: Lando Norris overtakes Yuki Tsunoda for 11th position.

Lap 7: Lando Norris, on hard tires, reports they are still going okay. The hard tires currently seem to be performing better than the medium tires. Meanwhile, Charles Leclerc has set the fastest lap as he starts to pull away from Oscar Piastri.

Lap 11: Max Verstappen, running in fifth position, reports issues with the Red Bull RB20, stating: " I have zero bite on the car."

Lap 16: Yuki Tsunoda has been forced to retire from the race due to the damage sustained from the contact with Lance Stroll. Footage shows a huge hole in the sidepod of the VCARB.

Lap 19: After the initial wave of pit stops, the only two drivers to not stop from the Top 10 yet are Alex Albon, running in fourth, and Lando Norris, in fifth.

Lap 20: Oscar Piastri overtakes Charles Leclerc to take the lead of the race!

Lap 21: Charles Leclerc and Sergio Perez are not letting Oscar Piastri get away as a DRS train has formed at the front of the pack.

Lap 21: Lando Norris reports that he is struggling a little bit, a sign that it could be time for him to replace the hard tires. However, he needs to push it on a bit longer to avoid being undercut, which is a similar situation for Alex Albon who is also still on his original hard tires.

Lap 23: Charles Leclerc manages to overtake Oscar Piastri to re-take the lead of the race. Unfortunately, for the Ferrari driver, Piastri takes the lead back on the main straight.

Lap 24: The fight for sixth position intensifies as Max Verstappen is hot on the heels of Lando Norris. The McLaren driver is defending and has not let the Red Bull driver to pull off the overtake yet.

Lap 25: Max Verstappen is forced to take avoiding action at Turn 15. He also reports to Red Bull that "my brakes are not working."

Lap 27: Some strong defending from Lando Norris who is still holding off Max Verstappen. Alex Albon is also still running in fifth position. Both Norris and Albon are still yet to pit but they are making the hard tires work for them.

Lap 29: The battle at the front of the grid continues. Oscar Piastri is showing just how well he can defend as he continues to hold off the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc.

Lap 30: Lewis Hamilton is struggling with his Mercedes W15 in 14th as he reports to the team: "Are you seeing how I have to drive this thing?"

Lap 32: Alex Albon finally pits to change to medium tires, he comes out in tenth position behind his teammate Franco Colapinto.

Lap 33: Max Verstappen continues to report issues to Red Bull: "I have no rear grip, the car is just jumping on the rear, losing contact."

Lap 34: George Russell overtakes Max Verstappen for sixth position.

Lap 37: Ferrari tells Charles Leclerc, "Box, opposite to McLaren" but it's a bluff. McLaren does not react though.

Lap 38: Lando Norris finally comes into the pits. He comes out in seventh position behind Max Verstappen. Meanwhile, Alex Albon overtakes Nico Hulkenberg for the ninth position.

Lap 47: There are 5 laps to go. Oscar Piastri has a 1.069-second lead on Charles Leclerc. Sergio Perez is 0.655 seconds behind Leclerc and Carlos Sainz is just 0.973 seconds behind Perez.

Lap 47: Lance Stroll retires from the race with a brake problem.

Lap 48: Charles Leclerc reports that his rear tires have gone. "No rear tyres at all." He is at risk of losing second place to Sergio Perez.

Lap 49: Lando Norris overtakes Max Verstappen for sixth position.

Lap 49: Franco Colapinto overtakes Nico Hulkenberg to take tenth position.

Lap 50: During the intense battle between Charles Leclerc, Sergio Perez, and Carlos Sainz, the latter two get caught up with each other and crash into the wall. Thankfully, both drivers are okay. The race will now end under virtual safety car conditions.