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Team quotes as Oracle Red Bull Racing celebrate both drivers on the podium for the first time in 2026 at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Oracle Red Bull Racing celebrated their first double podium of the 2026 F1 season as Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar finished second and third in Saturday’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix at the Baku City Circuit.
With both RB22 cars showing great speed on the ultra-fast Baku street circuit, Verstappen in particular made great early passes after the lights went out, quickly advancing from his eighth place starting spot.
As the race went on, mistakes began to happen regularly and the final quarter of the Grand Prix was a chaotic one, with two Safety Car periods happening in quick succession.
That was all the invitation the Oracle Red Bull Racing drivers needed to make a perfectly executed double pit-stop and effectively secure a 2–3 finish. However, with race leader George Russell firmly in his sights, Verstappen never gave up the chance in the final laps and pushed the Mercedes driver all the way to the line, finishing just +0.196s from victory.
As Oracle Red Bull Racing celebrated their best team result of season to date, Arvid Lindlbad also delivered another strong points-scoring drive for Visa Cashh App Racing Bulls.
The British rookie started down the field in 15th place on the grid, but drove a smart and controlled race to avoid the mid-pack chaos late in the race to end the Grand Prix in an excellent seventh place while team-mate Liam Lawson missed the points in 12th
QUOTES
Oracle Red Bull Racing
MAX VERSTAPPEN – 2nd
“We had a very strong race today. Yesterday, we found an issue with the engine and changed it, so luckily everything was fixed. For most of the race we were on the Medium tyre, which didn’t perform as well as expected, but we still managed to work our way up the field nicely. Once we swapped to the Soft, it felt much better. We had a good first restart and during the last few laps with George, we were pushing flat out. We had good pace and were both pulling away from those behind. On the final lap it got close as we approached the line, because George had turbo lag out of T15 due to the yellow flags. We really maximised the result today and we will, of course, keep trying for a win. All in all, it was a fantastic result for the team to have two cars on the podium; that’s exactly what you want to see. I had a lot of fun today.”
ISACK HADJAR – 3rd
“You can’t really ask for a better comeback than that. The car has been competitive throughout the week and all over the track, so we had the pace to really challenge and be exactly where we wanted to be. Our approach was key to a strong week; taking it step-by-step allowed me to build confidence and then the lap time comes with that. Ending it with P3 is a really pleasing result. It was a demanding track to make a return at, but once I got into a flow I felt like I never left. The race was great. I enjoyed myself out there; the car was very nice to drive and battling with Max was fun too. He’s been so strong all weekend and I was happy to stay behind him, as I knew the Soft was the superior tyre and he showed that at the end. A double podium is an awesome result. It’s the first in a while for the team, so I’m very happy for everyone. They deserve it.”
LAURENT MEKIES – CEO & Team Principal
“It was an incredible race from Max, Isack and the whole team. We finished just one tenth away from the win after 51 laps, securing P2 and P3 in what has been true teamwork to match Mercedes’ pace throughout the race and confirm the progress we are making. The upgrades clearly worked and a big thank you goes to everyone on both the chassis and PU side, here at the track and back at the factory, for extracting even more from the package.
“It was another excellent drive from Max. He has been flying from the first practice session onwards and it was hard to accept missing the chance to fight for pole yesterday and starting only P8. But, with our typical fighting spirit, he came back and passed the others in front on track before his final challenge with George. Isack has had an outstanding weekend since coming back from injury and has even taken another step forward. He raced very cleverly and managed the car perfectly to deliver the best possible result for the team. It was undoubtedly his best race with us so far, and he finished third on merit and pure pace.
“At the beginning of the season, when we were about a second off the pace, this felt very far away, but we are competing at the front now, at least here in Baku. Overall, this has been our best weekend of the season. The whole team has worked very hard for this double podium and it is the result of a collective effort from everyone involved.”
