Max Verstappen laid down the marker when it mattered most, denying George Russell a clean sweep of practice sessions by topping Free Practice 3 on the streets of Baku with a 1m 43.922s. The Red Bull machine looked sharp, but the Dutchman had to work for it, brushing the walls several times on his way to finishing one-tenth clear of his nearest rivals ahead of Qualifying.
Conditions at the start of the final hour were wild. High winds left the track surface visibly covered in dust and leaves, making everyone unusually reluctant to leave the pit lane. It took until the 20-minute mark before the heavy hitters finally appeared on soft Pirelli rubber. Lewis Hamilton initially posted a 1m 46.168s before Charles Leclerc briefly took over with a 1m 45.564s on his second attempt, while Kimi Antonelli and Russell slotted in after starting their sessions on the medium tyre.
The wind remained a brutal factor throughout the hour. Verstappen radioed in that his car felt very numb in Turn 16, while Hamilton, Antonelli, and Verstappen all found themselves visiting the run-off areas at Turns 1, 4, and 15 respectively as they searched for the absolute limit. Lance Stroll saw his running end early after glancing the inside wall at Turn 1, damaging a wheel on his Aston Martin and pulling off safely behind the barrier.
Times tumbled rapidly once everyone bolted on the soft tyres inside the final 15 minutes. Russell lowered the benchmark to 1m 44.021s, though he nearly binned it completely by heading straight on at Turn 7 and narrowly avoiding a head-on impact with the barrier. Antonelli also ran deep at Turn 1, while Verstappen slotted right between the Mercedes drivers after his wall-brushing flyer.
With the chequered flag waving, Verstappen's late 1m 43.922s secured the top spot over Russell, Hamilton, and Antonelli. Leclerc claimed fifth as the best of the rest, followed by Pierre Gasly in the Alpine, the McLarens of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, Isack Hadjar for Red Bull, and Alpine's Franco Colapinto rounding out the top 10.
Further down the order, Carlos Sainz took P11 for Williams, leading Ollie Bearman, Gabriel Bortoleto, Esteban Ocon, Nico Hulkenberg, and Sergio Perez in his Cadillac. The remaining runners were completed by Alex Albon, the Racing Bulls pairing of Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad, Fernando Alonso, Valtteri Bottas, and the unfortunate Stroll.
