F1 championship leader Piastri crashes out on first lap of Azerbaijan Grand Prix VIDEO

Australian driver Oscar Piastri crashed into a wall and was forced to retire from the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

Piastri locked his wheels and hit the safety barrier, marking his second mistake of the weekend, Report informs.

His car was removed from the track, and marshals repaired the barrier. Meanwhile, race stewards are investigating potential false starts by Piastri and Fernando Alonso.

The race officially began at 15:00 Baku time, as scheduled. Verstappen secured pole position during qualifying, with Sainz second and Lawson third. Mercedes drivers Andre Kimi Antonelli and George Russell qualified fourth and fifth, respectively.

The Baku City Circuit stretches 306.049 km and features 20 turns, with the race covering 51 laps. The first Formula 1 race in Baku was held in 2016 under the name European Grand Prix. Since 2017, the event has been known as the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

Past winners of the Baku race include Nico Rosberg (Germany), Daniel Ricciardo (Australia), Lewis Hamilton (UK), Valtteri Bottas (Finland), Sergio Perez (Mexico), and Max Verstappen (Netherlands). Perez won the race for the second time in 2023, while in 2024 McLaren’s Oscar Piastri took first place. The 2020 race was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the last four years, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc has consistently taken pole position in qualifying.

Ahead of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, the drivers’ championship standings are led by Oscar Piastri (McLaren) with 324 points, followed by teammate Lando Norris with 293, and Max Verstappen in third with 230. In the Constructors’ Championship, McLaren leads with 617 points, followed by Ferrari (280) and Mercedes (260).