Azerbaijan Grand Prix restarts after Verstappen crashes: F1 – live!

Turn one, and Hamilton just ploughs straight on! His breaks – which were smoking on the grid – have locked up and he is out of the race!

Vettel is the only driver in the top eight with a new set of tyres. He restarts in third – has he got it in him to pick off Hamilton and Perez…?

Another formation lap. Perez leads the 17 drivers out of the pit lane.

A minute until the restart. Hamilton has reminded his team that “it’d a marathon, not a sprint”. He’s talking about the championship. This race is very much a sprint.

Lance Stroll is interviewed and seems suitably irked. “It was going well, we were overcutting the field and it looked a good opportunity for something big today, so it’s a shame,” he says through gritted teeth.

Arthur Graves writes: “No doubt the irony of being out with a puncture then everyone else having the opportunity to change their tyres will make Verstappen smile.” Indeed.

As the drivers get out to stretch their legs, Perez, Hamilton and Vettel are in the podium positions – it would be Aston Martin’s first podium in F1. Meanwhile Latifi is in trouble for not coming into the pits – he was told to “stay out” by his team over the radio

So then – the race has been suspended on lap 49 of 51, which leaves us with a two-lap dash for the win. Under red-flag conditions every driver is entitled to a change of tyres, so this will be a short, sharp sprint.

Incredible drama in Baku. This could alter the course of the championship. Verstappen skulks over to his team, shaking his head non-stop in a state of simmering rage. “I think it’s a tyre issue. A tyre failure,” says Horner.

The red flags are out – the race will be suspended while the debris is cleared.

Lap 48: Verstappen has been flawless today and will come away without a point. He boots his tyre in frustration, leaving no doubts about what happened – huge questions will be asked of Pirelli after today. This race could finish behind a safety car.

Lap 47: Wow! Verstappen, coasting to victory mere seconds ago, is now out of the race, crashing on the main straight after what looks like a failure of his left rear. He clambers out of the cockpit, devastated but unharmed. Perez escapes in the lead and the safety cars is deployed.

Lap 46: Five laps to go and the imperious Verstappen leads by a heady 4.4sec, followed by Perez, Hamilton, Vettel (4.5sec behind third) and Gasly.

Lap 44: Tsunoda sits in seventh and has had a good race today having crashed in qualifying. Another fastest lap for Hamilton .

Lap 43: “Can’t get any closer,” says Hamilton, languishing a second behind Perez in third. This is all set to be a very glorious day indeed for Red Bull.

Lap 41: Verstappen has never finished in the top three in Baku, nor even led a lap. He is dominant out in front with 10 laps to go, 4secs ahead of Perez. George Russell, meanwhile, is within 2secs of Valtteri Bottas.

Lap 40: “That’s not possible! What the…? squawked Gasly as Vettel went past him. Hamilton sets a new fastest lap.

Lap 39: Hamilton has DRS on Perez. He thinks about attacking on the inside but decides against it. Perez stays strong.

Lap 38: Bottas, a middling ninth at the restart, has dropped four places to 13th on a miserable afternoon for him. Raikkonen and Alonso have both coasted past him.

Lap 35: Perez and Verstappen weave their way to the restart, at which point Verstappen steams away. Vettel attacks the inside of Leclec, who has locked up, then picks off Gasly for fourth! Verstappen has established a 2sec leads on Perez.

Lap 34: Pit lane entry is open, and Alonso heads in for some softs. None of the leading cars elect to pit.

Lap 33: Stroll’s race is over – he gets a pat on the back from his dad Laurence and seems shaken up but fine. This is will probably be a long safety car period.

Lap 32: “Woah, woah, woah, woah,” said Stroll. “Red flag, get me out of this place on the track. Got a puncture.” The medical car picks him up.

Lap 32: Big accident. Lance Stroll loses control on the start-finish straight and hits the wall, scattering debris all over the track. The safety car is deployed. Stroll seems OK.

Lap 29: Still no joy for Bottas, who is stuck in 10th behind Lando Norris. “If you don’t overtake, we’re going to finish 10th or ninth,” he is told over the radio. Unarguable logic.

Lap 27: It’s been plain sailing so far for Verstappen, who clocks up a fastest lap and leads by 6secs. Meanwhile Hamilton is losing more time back in third – he’s 2.5secs behind Perez.

Lap 26: Sainz is closing in on his countryman and mentor Fernando Alonso. He’s within a second of the man in 12th place and will surely attack him soon.

Lap 24: “Losing ground,” says Hamilton over his team radio – he has dropped back a bit from the two Red Bulls out in front.