Australian driver Oscar Piastri of McLaren has won the Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2024, held from September 13 to 15 in Baku.
The 23-year-old Piastri overturned Charles Leclerc’s pole position advantage to claim his second career victory in F1. Leclerc from Ferrari finished in second, while British driver George Russell of Mercedes completed the top three.
Following his victory at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Piastri hailed the race, saying that “that definitely goes down as one of the best races of my career”.
Asked how it feels to help bring McLaren back to the top of the standings, Piastri said that “considering where we started when I joined the team last year, we were literally last and now we are leading the world championship”.
It's McLaren’s fourth win of 2024 and first-ever win in Baku, and it puts them ahead in the Constructors' Championship. Piastri’s triumph, along with teammate Lando Norris’s recovery from 15th to fourth, means McLaren now leads the constructors’ championship by 20 points over Red Bull – who endured the disappointment of Perez’s late crash and took fifth with Max Verstappen.
Leclerc’s fading tyres gave Piastri a little bit of respite in the closing laps, before a dramatic crash involving Red Bull's Sergio Perez and Ferrari's Carlos Sainz.
The thrill of the event included extreme entertainment such as motorcycle races inside a giant globe at speeds of up to 70 km/h. The activities at Seaside Boulevard also featured a vintage car exhibition, various photo zones, and concerts by global music stars – Will Smith, J Balvin, and DJ and producer Black Coffee – taking place at the Baku Crystal Hall.
The Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2024, which first debuted in 2017, is held on the Baku City Circuit, a renowned street circuit in Baku, Azerbaijan’s capital. The race is set to remain at this venue until at least 2026.
The Baku City Circuit Operations Company anticipated a record-breaking global viewership for this year's Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Approximately 300 journalists, including about 200 from international media outlets such as Sky Sports, Motorsport, Canal+, Netflix, and The Sun, were covering the event and bringing the excitement of the races on Baku’s streets to audiences worldwide.
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