F1 returns this weekend in Baku for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, and it does so with a fresh format for the first Sprint weekend of the year.
F1 is back in Azerbaijan this weekend with an all-new format for the first Sprint weekend of the year, so let’s take a look at what changes have been made.
To start, there will be only one practice session all weekend. This will take place on Friday and will last the usual length of one hour. Later on Friday, we get qualifying. No format changes here, it’s the qualifying we all know and love. The change with qualifying comes with what it determines. Last year, qualifying determined the grid for the Sprint race, but now it determines the grid for Sunday’s Grand Prix.
The Sprint Shootout
Saturday is where most of the changes take place. Instead of getting right into the Sprint race, we will see the Sprint Shootout, another qualifying session that will determine the grid for the Sprint.
This session is quite similar to normal qualifying with some minor tweaks. First, each session is shorter. Q1 is 12 minutes (normally 18), Q2 is 10 minutes (normally 15), and Q3 is just eight minutes (normally 12). This means that each lap counts even more, especially in Q2 and Q3. In those sessions, there will be so little time that the drivers won’t have the opportunity to make pit stops to bolt on new tires in between laps, making a good strategy from the pit wall all the more critical.
There will also be mandatory tire compounds for the Sprint Shootout. Drivers must use medium tires in Q1 and Q2, while soft tires are required for Q3.
After the Sprint Shootout, things begin to look more familiar. We then come to the Sprint race, a 100km event taking around 30 minutes, where pit stops are not required. Points for the Sprint remain unchanged. The top eight drivers get points, with the winner getting eight and the eighth-place finisher getting one. On Sunday, we get the normal Grand Prix to cap off the weekend.
That’s a lot to take in, so if you’re still a bit confused you can scroll through Mercedes’ handy graphic to take another look at the changes.
Sprint Shootout: Explained! 🤓
Your guide to how the revamped #F1Sprint will look in Azerbaijan this weekend. 👊
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) April 26, 2023
The Circuit
The Baku City Circuit is a 6 km (3.72 miles) long circuit that has been on the F1 calendar since 2016 when it debuted as the European Grand Prix. The track is tight and twisty in some parts, but high speed in others, featuring the longest straight on the F1 calendar at 2.2 km (1.3 miles) long. It’s a great mix of being challenging for the drivers while offering overtaking opportunities to create chances to move through the field, unlike other street circuits.
Only two teams have ever won at the track: Mercedes and Red Bull. Interestingly enough, each team has won three times with a different driver each time. Nico Rosberg (2016), Lewis Hamilton (2018), and Valtteri Bottas (2019) have won for Mercedes, while Daniel Ricciardo (2017), Sergio Perez (2021), and Max Verstappen (2022) have taken the checkered flag for Red Bull. The F1 Azerbaijan race lap record is a time of 1:43.009 from Charles Leclerc in 2019, who also took pole position last year with a time of 1:41.359.
The teams will have the C3 (Hard), C4 (Medium), and C5 (Soft) tires available from Pirelli this weekend, the softest in the range. The race will be 51 laps long.
A Lap of the Baku City Circuit
The circuit begins along the 2.2 km main straight, with drivers reaching speeds of nearly 350 kph (217 mph). The 90-degree left-handed Turn 1 is the best overtaking spot on the track, coming at the end of the second DRS zone and giving drivers the chance to battle under braking to gain or maintain positions. Turn 2 is another 90-degree left but a bit tighter, which creates some chaos during races. The first DRS zone on the circuit is located after Turn 2 to give drivers another overtaking opportunity.
Turns 3 and 4 are more 90-degree corners that are a quick left-right combination leading into the tight sector two. To begin the second sector is a tight chicane that leads to a short straight down to Turn 7. This right-hander slows things down and feeds into the Castle section of Turns 8 through 12, where precision is paramount as drivers make their way through an extremely tight set of corners that precede the back straight. One small slip or lock-up and it’s a trip to the barriers.
The back straight is flat out but technically has two corners as it kinks to the left. This brings the drivers to another tricky corner at Turn 15, a left-hander that begins a descent down to Turn 16 which takes drivers back to the main straight. This “straight” also has some kinks as Turns 18 through 20 give one more challenge before the true straight run to the line to end the lap.
Points Standings
Here’s how things look as F1 heads to Azerbaijan for the fourth race of the season.
Driver Standings
- Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing – 69 points
- Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing – 54 points
- Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin – 45 points
- Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes – 38 points
- Carlos Sainz, Ferrari – 20 points
- Lance Stroll, Aston Martin – 20 points
- George Russell, Mercedes – 18 points
- Lando Norris, McLaren – 8 points
- Nico Hulkenberg, Haas – 6 points
- Charles Leclerc, Ferrari – 6 points
Constructor Standings
- Red Bull Racing – 123 points
- Aston Martin – 65 points
- Mercedes – 56 points
- Ferrari – 26 points
- McLaren – 12 points
- Alpine – 8 points
- Haas – 7 points
- Alfa Romeo – 6 points
- AlphaTauri – 1 point
- Williams – 1 point
Predictions
No surprises here. I’ll go with Verstappen to grab the win this weekend. He won in Baku by over 20 seconds last year and was on course for another easy win in 2021 before he suffered a puncture in the final stages of the race. The new weekend format may shake things up a bit but in the end, I think Verstappen comes out on top.
- Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing
- Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing
- Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
How To Watch – F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix (U.S. and U.K. times)
- Practice 1: Friday, April 28 – 5:25 a.m. ET – ESPN2 (10:25 Sky Sports F1)
- Qualifying: Friday, April 28 – 8:55 a.m. ET – ESPNU (13:55 Sky Sports F1)
- Sprint Shootout: Saturday, April 29 – 4:25 a.m. ET – ESPN2 (09:25 Sky Sports F1)
- Sprint Race: Saturday, April 29 – 9:25 a.m. ET – ESPN (14:25 Sky Sports F1)
- Grand Prix Sunday (Pre-Show): Sunday, April 30 – 5:30 a.m. ET – ESPN (10:30 Sky Sports F1)
- Azerbaijan Grand Prix: Sunday, April 30 – 6:55 a.m. ET – ESPN (11:55 Sky Sports F1)
