From the onset of the year 2016, when the inaugural race at Baku was dubbed the 2016 European Grand Prix, until the most recent event, which took place last year, the 2025 race, as many as 9 Grands Prix have been held at the famously high speed and cagey track that’s replete with 20 turns. Spread over 6.003 kilometres, the difficult to navigate circuit that tests the mental resolve of drivers and poses tough questions on car control.
That Baku is home to usually thrilling races would be like saying Lewis Hamilton is known to be a great driver or Kimi Antonelli is a brilliant young find in F1.
It’s evident. Widely known, already. And been seen and experienced by fans doing time on social media, commentators orating live from a venue with their competitors getting a first hand eye witness account of the two remarkably interesting talents on the grid!
But then over the years, Baku has seen and delivered a lot. It’s seen high speed impacts, sudden crashes, teammates coming to blows such as Verstappen and Ricciardo back in the day with their Red Bulls registering a day to forget and the track had even seen imperious pace of the Ferrari.
Moreover, the street course that can often ask imposing questions where it comes to striking a balance between tyre management and managing the pit stop strategy has never seen Ferrari on the top step of the podium.
There’s never been a sensational triumph of the red here.
It didn’t happen when Vettel or Raikkonen were teammates – as neither despite form or prowess managed to land on the top step here at Baku.
Similar fate met those that followed!
Even as on date- Ferrari search for their moment to jump about and celebrate from the top step at the circuit known for fast corners and back breaking speed.
That’s when- though rather surprisingly so- the Azerbaijan Grand Prix has unfurled moments of thrill for some of the not so hugely admired names such as that of Lance Stroll.
How?
In landing P3 on the podium back in the day in 2017 and that too, with Williams, even drivers who don’t particularly enjoy huge fan bases have had their moments at Baku but not those dubbed great and with far greater fan bases!
Moreover, it’s seen an Alonso spell of magic where the great Spaniard reminded us of just how and why a finish in 7th even came to matter. During an early race skirmish back in the 2018 season when the going got really tough for the Spanish samurai in a pretty unremarkable McLaren stint, the veteran managed to drag his then McLaren back to the pits despite limping on 2 wheels.
And that was about it.
Eventually, the man from Asturias finished on P7. That’s when Fernando Alonso was pretty much caught in a three-way squeeze between the Renault of Nico Hulkenberg as well as the Williams of Sergey Sirotkin.
There’s maybe something about Baku that while on one hand upholds the cult of legends like Alonso given that brave drive of 2018 (perhaps still under celebrated even as on date), also highlights the plight of some other incredible talents – such as Lewis Hamilton and the overheating of his front brakes at 2021.
A late race red flagged session brought out because of Max Verstappen’s tyre blowout back in the day meant that Hamilton and Peres were fighting for the grid position as track leadership back in 2021.
But while he went on to apply brakes of his Mercedes, the machine ever quick back in the day, they simply overheated and the front wheels simply locked up.
Sir Lewis didn’t win that year and his usually rampant W12 suffered a great deal.
But what’s another strange side to the track is that while it has seen some unfortunate run of events even for Red Bull, the highly talked about and perhaps needless coming to blows of Verstappen and his then teammate, Ricciardo, the very track has also seen the Milton Keyenes based outfit winning the event on the most number of occasions.
How so?
Well, the stats are far too impressive here aren’t they for Red Bull?
The 2017 race was won by noted Aussie Daniel Ricciardo post which the 2021, the 2022, and the 2023 events were claimed by Sergio Perez, Max Verstpapen and Sergio Perez, again in that order.
By the way, whom both Perez and Max have won exactly 2 previous races here, it was Max Verstappen who ruled the supreme here once again last year by winning in 2025. That was albeit in a year where McLaren, as one later found out, were in a league of their own.
Weren’t they?
On the other hand, the track which features some of the narrowest parts of any circuit- with Turns 8 to 10 measuring up to be just 7.6 metres wide- has also witnessed pure Leclerc pace.
That’s not just where it comes to the qualifying pace but even main race pace despite the Ferrari talent never winning here.
Not even once. You read that right.
Lest it is forgotten, demonstrating absolute top notch class and superior circuit control thanks to his sheer skill, Leclerc has been on pole here from 2021 until the 2024 event.
Four poles in as many qualifying events from 2021 until 2024!
Let that sink in.
The noted Monegasque topped the qualifying battle from 2021 until 2024, so if that’s not dominance in qualifying, then what is?
The record for the Fastest qualifying lap ever here (where it comes to the pole lap) belongs to Charles Leclerc of Ferrari. That’s when he recorded a supreme effort of 1:40.203 in 2023.
Rampant and yet, not managing a single win!
Then, the famed Monegasque also set the official lap record here; his 1:43.009 during the 2019 race drawing awe and inspiration. And yet, it didn’t result in a race win.
But let’s dive into the present – shall we?
This time around, however, it appears as though Mercedes and its main driver, Kimi Antonelli would be able to ace the contest.
Not only do they already have a superior car than the others, but also a brilliant driver whose talent and skill far belie his age.
The Italian driver Kimi Antonelli is all of 20!
And has the winning confidence by his side. Not too long ago, he won from P19 to take the checkered flag at Monza.
The circuit known for its 2.2 km straight and regarded for giving pure racing fans a belter of a contes, time and again, may not really throw up a straightforward race result. That’s unless the likes of George Rusell or Lewis Hamilton or even Leclerc can pull in some punches to somehow curb the menacing form and imperious touch of Kimi Antonelli, who’s been the class of the field thus far.
And at the same time the circuit known for constricted space may offer the likes of both Gasly and Lawson, two sentimental favourites, if one could put it that way, something action packed with which to captivate the grid.
But will such a thing happen as Carlos Sainz’s perhaps surprising and even thrilling P3 as seen in 2025, where his Williams gathered a maiden podium with the Spaniard.
Or will the testing streets bow to the prodigal son of F1 that the likeable Kimi Antonelli has already become?
There are several questions.
But none one can predict what’s to happen because the race itself here can be as unpredictable as a sudden burst of shower on a day sans a single cloud.
Isn’t it? What do you reckon?
