What We Learned From Thursday Practice in Baku – From New Sidepods to Briatore’s Threats

Thursday in Baku delivered more storylines than most of this season’s actual races – a new McLaren livery-adjacent design, a weight crisis at Williams, and a threat from Flavio Briatore. Here’s what we learned while waiting for the real practice sessions to start.

McLaren Reworked the Sidepods

The team showed up with a new sidepod design – a ramp reminiscent of Ferrari and Mercedes, paired with an inlet inspired by Audi. In other words, McLaren took the best bits of the competition while the competition watched from the sidelines.

Williams Is Now Carrying Ballast – Voluntarily

The team has hit the minimum weight limit and is now running ballast instead of chasing it. Alex Albon summed up the season so far fairly bluntly:

We’ve been carrying a substantial weight penalty this year so far.

At least the problem is solved now – at the cost of admitting they’d been racing with excess kilos for months while their rivals ran clean.

Cadillac Upgrades Brake Cooling

The American team arrived with a brake-cooling upgrade – hardly headline material, but exactly the sort of thing that decides who finishes on track and who finishes in the barrier.

Hadjar Signs Through 2027, Ocon Eyes the Exit at Haas

Red Bull extended Isack Hadjar’s contract early through 2027, with teammate Arvid Lindblad calling the move fair. Meanwhile Esteban Ocon may be left without a seat at Haas – Ferrari junior Rafael Camara is emerging as the favourite for the vacant spot.

Russell Delays His Engine Change to Austin

George Russell is choosing to delay his final power unit change (with the ADUO upgrade) to Austin, while Hamilton has already avoided a penalty thanks to mileage banked from his Spain retirement. Leclerc is still weighing the timing of his own change – everyone’s playing a tactical game with spare parts.

Hamilton vs. the Monaco Sprint Format

Hamilton didn’t hold back his opinion on sprint weekends, specifically Monaco’s:

It makes no sense to me. A sprint race is not the answer.

The seven-time champion insisted races should be getting longer, not shorter – an opinion that probably won’t travel far given the 2027 news above.

Verstappen Is Planning Endurance Racing, Just Not Le Mans

Max Verstappen confirmed the Nürburgring and the Spa 24 Hours are on his 2027 endurance calendar, but was firm on one point:

Le Mans is not on my list right now.

Apparently even future-retiree Verstappen has his limits.

Briatore Threatens to Pull Colapinto From Media Duties

Flavio Briatore threatened to limit Franco Colapinto’s media appearances after fans of the Argentine flooded his rivals with abuse online. Managing the fanbase, it turns out, is now harder than managing the car.

Based on reporting by autosport.com.