Azerbaijan Grand Prix: Track and Stats

Negotiations with FOM about the race in the capital of Azerbaijan started in 2013 and a preliminary contract was signed in March 2014. The organization of the Grand Prix in Azerbaijan was carried out at the state level, highlighting the status of the project and its importance to the country.

Initially, the stage was called the European Grand Prix. In 2012, Baku hosted the Eurovision Song Contest, in 2015 the European Games – in the same year they wanted to hold the Grand Prix of the same name, but postponed – the debut stage took place in 2016.

After the first leg, the organizers changed the name, the race was given the title of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and was first postponed until April, but will be held again in June this year. The circuit in Baku is one of 11 where the Grand Prix took place under a different name.

Track features

The street route, designed by the architectural firm of Herman Tilke, has been laid out in the historic center, along the sea promenade and the Gouvernement, and partly in the old town.

The Baku track is the fastest of the urban ones, second only to Spa and Jeddah in terms of the circle length in this year’s calendar, and in terms of the number of turns – towards Singapore and Abu Dhabi – and also against turns clockwise. The maximum speed at the end of the straight is approximately 370 km/h.

The configuration includes twenty turns – 12 to the left and eight to the right, of which eight – 90 degrees. The width of the track is from 13 in a wide section to 7.6 meters in the area of ​​the seventh and eighth bends in the old town.

The track is almost completely below sea level, like most of the city of Baku – only Turns 13 and 14 are slightly above sea level.

The cars are tuned for a low level of downforce – just less in Monza, but in Baku there are no fast corners where you can warm up the rubber, so it’s important to keep the tires working efficiently to keep grip on the hot asphalt. The track is used for racing only once a year, at the weekend the track is covered with a layer of used rubber and the grip improves.

The circle starts on Neftchilar Avenue, the first sector is laid through fashionable areas, after the seventh turn the track heads towards the old town where the track is narrow and slow, and in the third sector the segment of 16 to 20 turns and the next straight line is passed with the accelerator pedal fully depressed.

Baku managed to break the usual stereotype of Formula 1 urban laps in recent years by including the longest straight on the calendar (2.1 km) in the configuration, giving the opportunity to fight for position over the traditional difficulties. of street racing. On the long straight, the brakes have time to cool, followed by some serious braking, with riders often blocking the rubber and flying into the safety zone.

One of the curious features is that on Neftchilar Avenue, cars drive in opposite directions: from Turn 6 to Turn 7 in one direction and from Turn 19 to Turn 20 in the opposite direction, separated by a special fence.

Hermann Tilkearchitect: “This is the fastest of the city tracks, it is laid in the historic center with a unique atmosphere that fans will feel in the stands and by the TV screens.

The culture and history of Baku has become an important part of this project, as we developed the configuration, we wanted to demonstrate the beauty of the historical sites of this city and its modernity.

The most difficult task was developing the configuration – with urban routes it is always difficult, because they use the existing architecture. There were problems, but we successfully solved them together with the organizers.”

Sebastian Vettel: “This six kilometer course has a 2.2km straight, the longest on the calendar, where we accelerate to 360 km/h, followed by heavy braking for a slow first left turn.

The width of the track in the area of ​​a steep climb that runs along the walls of the old town is only seven meters, and the Formula 1 cars there are very narrow – like threading through the eye of a needle. Two cars won’t fit there, so somehow you have to agree on who will pass first!

In Baku it is quite difficult to determine the angle of attack of the wings so that the car keeps well on the track in slow corners, but at the same time is fast enough on the straights, where we drive at full throttle for a long time. time. Finding the right compromise is not easy.”

Weekend schedule

You can follow the progress of all Formula 1 sessions on our live streaming page. We have written instructions for watching live video broadcasts.

Tire sets given to teams for the weekend

For the second time in the season Pirelli will bring the softest compounds to the podium – C3, C4 and C5 marked as Hard, Medium and Soft.

A set of the softest tires must be kept for the qualifying final – after that those who raced in the final must return this set to Pirelli.

One set of medium and hard tires must be kept for the race – unless declared wet, riders must use at least one of these sets.

Performance of current riders in Baku

Daniel Riccardo: “Unlike other urban circuits, in Baku you can overtake – there are many places to overtake, which is not the case in Monaco and Singapore.

The hardest thing in Baku is braking. There are many places where you should slow down as late as possible, but you have no room for error. If you block the wheels when braking, you will be standing in a wall the next moment. I would say the hardest thing in Baku is to find the limit under braking and keep this confidence.

Turns 1, 2, straight DRS – the rider sees the walls all the time and instincts call to hit the brake pedal – you have to have a lot of confidence to do this as late as possible. The biggest challenge in Baku is to attack while braking. Plus, it’s a fast track. In Monaco the track is not as fast, cornering is more important on it, while braking is more important in Baku.

The street course should not only be loved, but also respected, and understand its characteristics. To go fast, you have to attack at the limit without making mistakes.