RACE 4
Azerbaijan Grand Prix
Baku
Baku City Circuit is the newest track on the F1 calendar, with this year's Azerbaijan GP being only the third F1 race ever to be held there.
The circuit is based in the heart of Baku city centre and the lap is so varied that you could describe it as having multiple personalities.
Azerbaijan Grand Prix Details |
Location |
Baku City Circuit,
Baku, Azerbaijan |
Date |
27th-29th Aprilh 2018 |
Lap Length |
3.730mi, 6.003km |
Laps |
51 |
Race Distance |
190.170mi, 306.049km |
Turns |
20 |
Lap record |
1:43.441, Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari, 2017 |
The Track
Baku is the third track on the calendar to be designed by Tilke, and the second to be mostly below sea level. But this strange street circuit is such a Jekyll and Hyde track that it's difficult to know quite what to make of it.
The right hand side of the track (as we look at the plans) takes the drivers anti clockwise through the modern shopping boulevards of Baku, and consists of a simple, and characterless series of straights and tight 90° corners.
The central section is a rather odd looking motorway straight where the cars travel in opposite directions, seperated only by a central barrier.
But on the left of the layout, we get to the old town, which provides something more interesting. Turns 8 to 12 are probably the narrowest and tightest of any in F1, as the drivers cut through the old city streets. Then there is a swooping loop of the perimeter of the old town, with varied corners and even some elevation changes.
Winners
There have only been three F1 races in Baku.
There was the 2016 European Grand Prix won by Nico Rosberg, the inagural Azerbaijan GP of 2017, won by Daniel Ricciardo, and this year's GP won by Lewis Hamilton.
Past Winners |
2018 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes |
2017 | Daniel Ricciardo | Red Bull |