F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix: Baku City Circuit Track Guide

• Turn 1: Heavy braking at the end of the long start-finish straight for a 90-degree left

• Turn 2: Another 90-degree left leading onto the first DRS straight. Can be trouble on lap one

• Turn 3: Again right-angled to the left with an oft-used escape road

• Turn 4: The first right-hander, again 90 degrees though the track opens up slightly on exit

• Turn 5/6: Compromise the left-hander at T5 for the instant switchback for T6. The wall pinches in on exit

• Turn 7: Difficult in the low sun, an acute right-hander as the track tightens

• Turn 8/9/10/11: The feature of this circuit. Tight and twisty through the castle section with danger either side. T11 offers respite as the track opens at the top of the hill

• Turn 12: A 90-degree left with space on exit before a blast at the highest point of the circuit

• Turn 13/14: Two left-hand kinks at full throttle as cars cross over the crest of the hill

• Turn 15: Difficult on the brakes as the track moves downhill, the exit wall at this left-hander sees plenty of action and can damage an entire weekend

• Turn 16: No danger on exit but the most crucial corner on the circuit, this left sets cars up for the long full-throttle run to Turn 1

• Turn 17/18/19/20: High-speed kinks from right-to-left on what is essentially an extended straight before DRS takes drivers to the line

A test of driver concentration and car set-up, the Baku City Circuit matches high top speeds that rival Monza to a narrow street layout that is narrower than Monaco at some points.

Any mistakes are punished by walls encircling the circuit, with plenty of action promoted by the layout.

Baku City Circuit Facts

Most wins by a driver

• Sergio Perez - 2 wins
• Nico Rosberg - 1 win
• Daniel Ricciardo - 1 win
• Lewis Hamilton - 1 win
• Valterri Bottas - 1 win
• Max Verstappen - 1 win
• Oscar Piastri - 1 win

Most wins by a team

• Red Bull - 4 wins
• Mercedes - 3 wins
• McLaren - 1 win

Last 8 winners

• 2024 - Oscar Piastri [McLaren]
• 2023 - Sergio Perez [Red Bull]
• 2022 - Max Verstappen [Red Bull]
• 2021 - Sergio Perez [Red Bull]
• 2019 - Valtteri Bottas [Mercedes]
• 2018 - Lewis Hamilton [Mercedes]
• 2017 - Daniel Ricciardo [Red Bull]
• 2016 - Nico Rosberg [Mercedes]

Baku City Circuit Lap record

• Race lap record - 1:43.009s [Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, 2019]
• Outright lap record - 1:40.203s [Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, 2023]

Charles Leclerc holds both the race and outright lap records for the Baku City Circuit.

The Ferrari driver has taken every pole position since the race returned from a Covid-enforced hiatus in 2021.

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