After things got tight in the Formula 1 World Championship Standings after Verstappen’s win in the Monaco GP, the Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2021 promises a lot of emotions for the Formula 1 fans. Charles Leclerc took the pole position after an incident pack qualifying session.
Saturday’s session proved that the Baku City Circuit isn’t easy, especially because of the tricky 15th curve where accidents are likely to happen. Today five pilots crashed: Lance Stroll, Antonio Giovinazzi, Daniel Ricciardo, Yuki Tsunoda and Carlos Sainz all fell foul of the barriers during the qualys.
Actually, four red flags appeared during the qualifying for the 2021 Azerbaijan GP. The last time something like that occured was in qualifying for the 2016 Hungarian GP. But all the drama is building up for a thrilling race this Sunday, in which everything can happen.
2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix: Starting Grid
In the middle of Saturday’s chaos, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc emerged victorious with a surprising pole position. It is his second pole position of the season after he took it in the 2021 Monaco GP. But, sadly for him, he couldn't race after a crash that damaged his car.
On the other hand, Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes will start second and Max Verstappen will be third. The other surprise of the day was the fourth place of Pierre Gasly. Check out the starting grid for Sunday’s :
1. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
2. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
3. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
4. Pierre Gasly (AlphaTauri)
5. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)
6. Sergio Perez (Red Bull)
7. Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri)
8. Fernando Alonso (Alpine)
9. Lando Norris (McLaren)
10. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes)
11. Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin)
12. Esteban Ocon (Alpine)
13. Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren)
14. Kimi Raikkonen (Alfa Romeo)
15. George Russell (Williams)
16. Nicholas Latifi (Williams)
17. Mick Schumacher (Haas)
18. Nikita Mazepin (Haas)
19. Antonio Giovinazzi (Alfa Romeo)
20. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix: Date
The Azerbaijan Grand Prix Race will take place on Sunday, June 6, 2021, at Baku City Circuit. It will have 51 laps in a circuit with 6,003 kilometres.
2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix: Time by State
ET: 8:00 AM
CT: 7:00 AM
MT: 6:00 AM
PT: 5:00 AM
TV Channel in the US to watch 2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix
The sixth race of the Formula One World Championship 2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix will be broadcasted in the United States by ESPN.
2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix: Storylines
Max Verstappen is the current leader of the 2021 World Formula 1 Championship after winning the Monaco GP. The Dutch has four points more than Lewis Hamilton, who is second. The seven times champion hasn’t been as dominant as previous years but he wants to break his tie with Michael Schumacher’s championships.
Hamilton starts second in Baku for the third-consecutive Azerbaijan GP. He only got one victory in 2018, while his teammate Bottas won in the last edition (2019). The first Azerbaijan GP was for Daniel Ricciardo, who now races with McLaren. On the other hand, Red Bull’s Sergio Perez will start P6, after Lando Norris received a penalty for not respecting a red flag.
Both Red Bull and Mercedes have been the best teams so far. However, Ferrari has shown some signs of improvement after years of suffering. Starting in the first positions, Leclerc will try to take his first race of the season or at least his first podium.
2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix: Predictions and odds
Oddsmakers have made their predictions for Sunday's race at Baku, and Lewis Hamilton is seen as favorite over Max Verstappen. FanDuel has given odds of +145 to Hamilton, while a Verstappen victory would result in a +160 payout, and Charles Leclerc has odds of +350.
| FanDuel | |
| Lewis Hamilton | +145 |
| Max Verstappen | +160 |
| Charles Leclerc | +350 |
| Sergio Perez | +1600 |
| Pierre Gasly | +3000 |
| Carlos Sainz | +3600 |
| Lando Norris | +4200 |
| Valtteri Bottas | +5000 |
| Fernando Alonso | +14000 |
| Yuki Tsunoda | +14000 |
| Daniel Ricciardo | +18000 |
| Esteban Ocon | +18000 |
| Antonio Giovinazzi | +20000 |
| George Russell | +20000 |
| Kimi Raikkonnen | +20000 |
| Lance Stroll | +20000 |
| Nicholas Latifi | +20000 |
| Nikita Mazepin | +20000 |
| Sebastian Vettel | +20000 |
| Mick Shumacher | +20000 |
*Odds by FanDuel
