Azerbaijan Grand Prix: Boredom didn't stop Baku's date with chaos

When the Formula 1 circus visited the Spanish capital two weeks ago, many wanted to kill off the Madrid Circuit forever. And yes, it is evident that the Madrid track needs tweaks, but what we saw today in Baku up until the first safety car proves that many people were looking at the finger and not the moon the other day: the current F1 regulations are an attack on the spirit of racing.

What have they done to you, Baku? 🤷🏻

In this unusual "sabbatical" race, expectations were relatively high: since joining the calendar, Baku has almost always given us chaotic and thrilling races. However, this year, had it not been for individual blunders by Albon and Colapinto, the race would have been completely soporific (as it was right up until the first safety car).

And not even the chaos stemming from the accidents gave us an especially memorable race. Having a race like this at one of the most fun circuits on the calendar shows just how bad Formula 1 is in 2026.

King George of Azerbaijan 🤴🏻🇦🇿

And speaking of breaking trends, on the streets of Baku, George Russell has once again shown his best level without suffering any mechanical setbacks (so common this year on that side of the Mercedes garage). Thinking of the start of a comeback seems like a pipe dream at this stage of the game, but it would be important for him to regain his confidence for the remainder of the year (provided that luck, or whatever it is, is on his side).

But what did you do, Franco? 🫣

As we mentioned at the beginning, the race was marked by two events: Albon's accident against the barriers, just before entering the castle section, and Colapinto's pile-up at Turn 1, with which the Argentine put an end to the races of Lando Norris and (even worse) his teammate Pierre Gasly. After the constant controversy surrounding his figure due to the excesses of some of his fans on social media, the subsequent recent warning from Flavio Briatore for that reason, and the little historical tolerance that the Italian has for driving errors, one might think that Franco's seat could be at risk. Hopefully the Argentine, who has fought so hard to reach F1, will reverse his situation and his staunch supporters will learn that motorsport is a sport of camaraderie.

Honda out of touch... 🤬

To finish, and much to our regret, we have to talk again about Aston Martin-Honda and their lamentable weekend. The legendary Fernando Alonso quote, "GP2 engine", from his time at McLaren-Honda, materialized in Azerbaijan this year as the F2 cars were faster on the main straight than the Japanese power unit itself. An absolute disgrace that hurts even more when remembering that yesterday marked the 21st anniversary of Fernando Alonso's first F1 world championship.

Luis Díaz Urbistondo — Founder of Montdebó

Published on 09/26/2026