Three cars in huge CRASH on the start line in the Azerbaijan GP F2 race as one flips upside down in scary scenes in Baku

A massive crash involving three F2 drivers led to an abrupt halt in proceedings after only one lap at the Baku City circuit.

The junior formula got underway on Sunday morning in Azerbaijan but was quickly red-flagged when Invicta Racing's Kush Maini, Pepe Marti of Campos Racing, and MP Motorsport driver Oliver Goethe collided at the back of the field.

The shocking incident saw Marti's vehicle turn onto its side and leave the ground. An issue with his car caused it to stall on the start line with the rest of the field raced away.

The 19-year-old Barcelona native came into the event off the back of a 12-placed finish at Monza last time out. His teammate Isack Hadjar currently leads the F2 championship.

The pair, a new line-up for the team in 2024, are two of the most promising young drivers and are part of Red Bull's junior driver roster.

Immediately after the incident, Hadjar could be heard saying on the team radio: 'Oh my God, that was bad.'

Thankfully, the three drivers involved were unharmed and were able to walk away from the incident. The red flag caused a delay of around 30 minutes to the feature race in Baku.

Maini of Invicta Racing formerly drove for Campos and is yet to record a win in his 42 F2 races. He currently sits 10th in the championship, while British-born Danish-German driver Goethe is yet to record a point after only just making the step up to F2.

Last week, Goethe was honest in his disappointment at missing out on the chance to try and win.

'It was a bit annoying that I couldn't compete in the last race,' he said via FormulaNerds. 'I was still technically in the fight for the championship, the chances were extremely slim but I was in the fight for the top five.

'But I can't complain, I got the opportunity to drive F2 for the rest of the year, and for me, this is a much more important path for my career if I had to choose either or.'

Caught in a seven-way contest for the F3, the 19-year-old has to forgo the chance to gong when he was given the chance to make another step up the ladder toward F1.

The crash completed a miserable weekend for Goethe, who was penalized for causing a collision in the sprint race on Saturday.

Sunday's feature race was restarted with a rolling start at 9.13 am (12:13 pm local time). The delay ate a significant chunk into the maximum 60 minutes allowed for an F2 feature race.

Its resumption left the remaining participants with less than 30 minutes on the Baku City circuit. The race was won by Dutch driver Richard Verschoor, who claimed his fourth F2 victory.

Hadjar remains the leader in the standings with 165 points after 12 races ahead of Gabriel Bortoleto.