F1 · Reports
Ferrari’s Baku return is framed by 2025 setback
A retrospective data read on Ferrari’s Baku baseline: second in the 2026 constructors’ standings, but eighth and ninth in last year’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Circuit context
The Azerbaijan Grand Prix’s first qualifying session is scheduled for 12:00 UTC on 25 September 2026 at Baku City Circuit, with the event still listed as scheduled. Source
The historical reference point is the completed 2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix race, held at the same circuit on 21 September over 51 laps and 306.0 kilometres. Source
That result supplies the Baku baseline for this retrospective rather than a prediction for the forthcoming qualifying session. Source Source
Driver and team form lines
Ferrari occupy second place in the 2026 constructors’ standings on 358 points. Source
At Baku last year, Lewis Hamilton started 12th and finished eighth for Ferrari, while Charles Leclerc started 10th and finished ninth. Source
Those grid positions and finishes left both Ferrari drivers outside the top seven in both qualifying-derived starting position and race classification. Source
The later current-season sample came at the Spain Grand Prix in Madrid on 13 September 2026, where both drivers were again classified for Ferrari. Source Source
Leclerc finished fourth from fifth on the grid in Madrid, while Hamilton started fourth but retired after five laps. Source
That is a useful current-seat reference, but it is a single completed race sample rather than evidence of a Baku outcome. Source Source
Variables: weather and tyres
The scheduled-event record contains no weather entry for the 2026 first qualifying session. Source
It also has no completed lap, distance or fastest-lap figures, as expected for a session that has not yet taken place. Source
The cited event record supplies no tyre or Pirelli-compound information, so a compound-based expectation cannot be set from the available evidence. Source
Accordingly, weather and tyre selection remain unverified variables in this read. Source
The Read
The evidence establishes Ferrari’s broad 2026 standing and a specific Baku comparison point, rather than a basis for calling the session. Source Source
The clearest measurable improvement would be for either Ferrari driver to better last year’s Baku starting positions of 12th and 10th, which preceded finishes of eighth and ninth. Source
Leclerc’s fourth place in Madrid provides the stronger recent finishing result in the available Ferrari sample, while Hamilton’s retirement there limits what can be inferred from his latest classified weekend. Source
Neither the Madrid result nor last year’s Baku classification determines the order for the forthcoming qualifying session. Source Source Source
Temporal Read
This is a retrospective context read: it links the completed 2025 Baku race with the later Ferrari sample from Madrid on 13 September 2026, ahead of the qualifying session scheduled for 25 September 2026. Source Source Source Source
It does not present a live result or a forecast, because the available record confirms the schedule and past classifications but not the forthcoming conditions, tyre compounds or qualifying times. Source Source Source
Key facts
6 data pointsSources used in this piece
6 sources01HFC Data
DataScheduled 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix first qualifying
03HFC Data
Data2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix event schedule and race details
04HFC Data
Data2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix race classification
05HFC Data
Data2026 Spain Grand Prix race classification
06HFC Data
Data2026 Spain Grand Prix event date and status
What do these badges mean?
- Cross-checked
- Hangout FC data and an independent source agree on this figure.
- Single source
- One source backs this figure; no second source was available to check it.
- Partial coverage
- Our data covers this only partly, for example a table not yet updated with today's results. Treat it as context.
- Unverified source
- We could not resolve a source for this claim.
- Sources disagree
- Hangout FC data and another source give different figures. Both are listed.
