Close Oscar Piastri reacts to crash in Azerbaijan GP qualifyingOscar Piastri’s title charge survived a first-lap crash at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix without major damage as rival Lando Norris could finish only seventh. A second crash of the weekend for Piastri ended his 34-race streak of finishing a Grand Prix within five corners and threw the door wide open for McLaren team-mate Norris to make major inroads into his championship lead. Pole-sitter Max Verstappen breezed to a commanding lights-to-flag victory, blasting away from the line and winning by 14 seconds to claim successive victories and close within 69 points of Piastri. George Russell finished second, with Carlos Sainz securing his first podium for Williams in third. Follow the Azerbaijan Grand Prix with The Independent: