Sprinting in the streets of Baku
It almost seemed like an early summer break, but after weeks of silence, Formula 1 is finally back! It will immediately be a special weekend: thanks to the new sprint race format, it will be three days full of action.
Timetable GP Azerbaijan
Grab your calendar if you want to follow all the action live next weekend, because the timetable looks quite different than you’re used to. Due to the new sprint race program explained in more detail here, there will be only one free practice session and qualifying on both Friday and Saturday. The first is for Sunday’s GP, the second, called Sprint Shootout qualifying, determines the grid for the subsequent sprint race. A lot of sessions on which something depends!
| Date | Session | Time (NL) |
| Friday Apr 28 | Free training | 11.30 – 12.30 |
| Friday Apr 28 | Qualification (for GP) | 3:00 pm – 4:00 pm |
| Saturday Apr 29 | Sprint Shootout | 10.30 – 11.14 |
| Saturday Apr 29 | Sprint race | 15.30 – 16.00 |
| Sunday Apr 30 | Grand Prix | 13.00 |
Championship standings
It is already clear that Max Verstappen is also the man to beat this season. In any case, teammate Sergio Pérez also has a view of the first place and behind that Fernando Alonso presents himself as a stable podium candidate. Who would have expected that last year? Lewis Hamilton and Carlos Sainz try to keep the honors high for their teams and it is also striking that Nico Hülkenberg, who has returned to F1, has managed to secure a place in the top 10.
| driver | Pt. |
| 1. Max Verstappen – Red Bull | 69 |
| 2. Sergio Perez – Red Bull | 54 |
| 3. Fernando Alonso – Aston Martin | 45 |
| 4.Lewis Hamilton-Mercedes | 38 |
| 5. Carlos Sainz – Ferrari | 20 |
| 6. Lance Stroll – Aston Martin | 20 |
| 7.George Russell-Mercedes | 18 |
| 8. Lando Norris-McLaren | 8 |
| 9. Nico Hulkenberg – Haas | 6 |
| 10.Charles Leclerc | 6 |
With a car that has taken off as strongly as the RB19, it is now almost no longer a question of if, but when Red Bull will win the constructors’ title again. So there is work to be done for the pursuers, but especially for Mercedes and Ferrari. To their great shock, they still see not only Red Bull, but also Aston Martin above them. It is striking that all teams have already scored at least one point after only three races.
| Constructor | Pt. |
| Red Bull | 123 |
| Aston Martin | 65 |
| Mercedes | 56 |
| Ferrari | 26 |
| McLaren | 12 |
| Alpine | 8 |
| Hare | 7 |
| Alfa Romeo | 6 |
| AlphaTauri | 1 |
| Williams | 1 |
Circuit
Every year, the streets of Azerbaijan’s capital are transformed into a blood-curdling street circuit. In Baku, especially for a street circuit, dizzying speeds are achieved. That’s not the only spectacular thing about the track. For example, there is the extremely narrow climb along the castle wall and there are some treacherous height changes in fairly sharp turns. In short, it is a circuit where a mistake can be made in a small corner and that is partly why Baku often produces spectacular races in which a lot happens.
Coming Sunday, the men will drive 51 laps on the circuit, which is just over 6 km long, accounting for more than 306 km in total race distance. The lap record is held by Charles Leclerc, who lapped here in 1:43.009 in 2019. It remains to be seen whether that record can be broken at all this weekend, because in 2019 the cars not only had more downforce, Ferrari also drove an unapproachably strong (later turned out to be not entirely legal) engine, which made enormous top speeds possible.
Weather forecast
It will be wonderful spring weather in Baku this weekend. On Friday and Saturday it will be about 20 degrees and on Sunday it will be a few degrees warmer. All that with a sun and here and there a small cloud. Precipitation will therefore play no role, but the wind has traditionally been a factor to take into account. From the Caspian Sea there are still some gusts on the circuit, which can influence the downforce of the cars.
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– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl