The 39-year old beat the likes of Ferrari and McLaren to clock the fastest lap of the day as drivers up and down the grid struggled to extract performance around the low-grip track.
Lewis Hamilton of Mercerdes and Alpine's Esteban Ocon will start the Azerbaijan Grand Prix from the pit lane after taking multiple new power unit elements following qualifying, breaching their allowances for the season.
Though it's unclear if a final contract has been signed or not, talks are still progressing, and this week's end could see the outcome.
On Sunday, Red Bull driver Max Verstappen won the Austrian Grand Prix, further solidifying his pursuit of a third consecutive…
Under immense pressure, Russell retained his lead over Hamilton on the Lap 60 restart and delivered his first win by a margin of 1.5 seconds
Messi and Hamilton were so close in terms of their achievements in 2019 that even the ultimate sporting jury, the Laureus World Sports Academy, could not split them
Hamilton said he was "lucky enough" to visit Australia -- home of the Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit -- often and therefore knew first-hand how "beautiful" the Oceanic country was.
Hamilton, the defending champion in Abu Dhabi, is now just one drivers' title shy of the record held by German racing legend Michael Schumacher
The 34-year-old Briton fought with ferocious determination to win from fifth on the grid but was unable to resist the Finn, who started from pole and, with a two-stop strategy, had fresher tyres in the critical final laps.
Charles Leclerc could only finish sixth in the second Ferrari, meaning Mercedes clinched a record sixth successive constructors' world championship with their double podium finish.
