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2022 Azerbaijan GP: Everything you need to know about Baku Street Circuit ahead of Azerbaijan Grand Prix

Somin Bhattacharjee
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2022 Azerbaijan GP: Everything you need to know about Baku Street Circuit ahead of Azerbaijan Grand Prix

The fifth ever Azerbaijan GP takes place this weekend at the Baku City Circuit, which is the third longest F1 track on the calendar.

Baku hosted it’s first ever race in 2016 in the form of the European Grand Prix. Since 2017, the same venue has hosted the Azerbaijan GP, with the only exception coming in 2020 when the race was cancelled due to the Covid 19 pandemic.

Baku is a street circuit, and features a very unique layout. It has a the narrow walls and twisty turvy layout of a traditional street circuit, but  also features very long straights, where cars can reach speeds of more than 320 kmph.

Last year’s Azerbaijan GP was a classic race, which saw Sergio Perez win his first race with Red Bull. Sebastian Vettel took P2 in what Aston Martin’s first ever F1 podium, and AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly held of pole-sitter Charles Leclerc in the final lap to take P3.

Coming into this year’s race, Ferrari and Red Bull seem like favorites once again. Leclerc, Perez and the latter’s teammate Max Verstappen are narrowly separated at the top of the Championship Standings, and it promises to be a close encounter.

Also read: “We didn’t have any cars splitting in half”– Former Marussia driver hits back at Max Verstappen for calling Indy500 dangerous

Baku Street Circuit and race length this weekend:

The Baku City Circuit is the third longest race in the F1 calendar (after Spa and Jeddah). A complete lap of the circuit is 3.730 miles (6.003 km). There have been no changes in layout since the first ever race in the city. Sunday’s race will feature a total of 51 laps.

There has been some criticism regarding the third sector of this track. 2016 Champion Nico Rosberg questioned the pit entry location, which is adjacent to the 220 mph main straight. He called it “one of the places I always found the most dangerous of the whole year.”

Former F1 race director Michael Masi however, dismissed these concerns. The Aussie insisted that the pit lane entry met FIA’s safety regulations, and was hence not dangerous.

Also read: “Nowadays Sebastian Vettel drives a rainbow bicycle”- F1 Twitter bashes FIA president for asking drivers to stay away from ‘imposing beliefs’

Azerbaijan GP lap records:

The only cars to race around the Baku City Circuit have been F1, F2 and GP2 cars. There has not been any change in layout for this street track either. Charles Leclerc holds the record for the fastest lap time, not just in Formula 1, but F2 as well. Meanwhile, former Alfa Romeo driver holds the record for the fastest time in the GP2 series.

Name of DriverLap TimeF1 CarRace
Formula 1Charles Leclerc01:43.0Ferrari SF902019 Azerbaijan GP
Formula 2Charles Leclerc01:53.6Dallara GP2/112017 Baku Formula 2 round
GP 2Antonio Giovinazzi01:54.8Dallara GP2/112016 Baku GP2 series round

Azerbaijan Grand Prix past winners:

Baku has never seen a repeat winner, in it’s previous five installments. We’ve also had different pole sitters, and different drivers having the fastest lap at the Azerbaijan GP! The very first race in Baku was won by Mercedes’ Rosberg, and last year it was Sergio Perez who won the outing.

Winners from the previous races in Baku:

2021: Sergio Perez
2019:
Valtteri Bottas
2018:
Lewis Hamilton
2017:
Daniel Ricciardo
2016:
Nico Rosberg

About the author

Somin Bhattacharjee

Somin Bhattacharjee

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Formula 1 Editor Somin Bhattacharjee fell for the sport as well as Fernando Alonso on the same day — during the Spaniard’s thrilling victory at the German GP in 2010. Over the years, the passion magnified manyfold, and metamorphosed into a writing career in 2021. Though holding a bachelor's degree in marketing, Somin discovered his true calling in writing. He has penned over 2,700 articles for TheSportsRush, presenting a diverse range — news reports, opinions, and exclusives. A true Tiffosi, Somin never gives up on a chance to defend the Ferrari boys as a fan. As a sports writer though, he remains objective to the core and relishes opportunities to follow and engage in dissecting the action during races. That’s where the real thrill lies for him. Beyond the racetrack, Somin plays different sports including soccer. He enjoys exploring other sporting events and proudly supports Spanish soccer club Real Madrid.

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