Formula 1: Azerbaijan Grand Prix Preview

Formula 1 heads into a double-header with Azerbaijan and Singapore hosting the Grand Prix on challenging street circuits.

Max Verstappen has seen his lead in the drivers’ championship reduced to 62 points with eight races remaining. It will take a monumental effort by McLaren’s Lando Norris to pip the Red Driver to the title. The British driver lost out to teammate Oscar Piastri and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in Monza and faces a similar challenge in Baku.

Ferrari emerged victorious a fortnight ago at their home race, and this weekend, McLaren and the Italian team will resume battle at the top for the win.

The Track

The Azerbaijan GP has been on the calendar since 2016 and is the sport’s newest street circuit. It measures just over six kilometres and is dominated by a two-kilometre-long main straight where the drivers can reach over 340km/h. This is where most of the overtaking takes place.

The second sector is made up of tight and twisty corners that are unforgiving if a mistake is made. Teams will have to strike a balance with the car’s setup as downforce is required for the second sector. In the first and third sectors that have long straights, less drag is needed to capitalise on the high-speed sections. This is where the two DRS zones are located and we could see a scenario of three cars abreast into the first corner, let’s hope it doesn’t bring out a red flag.

Tyre degradation could be a factor here and Pirelli has opted to bring their three softest dry compounds to Azerbaijan – namely the C3 as the hard, the C4 as the medium, and the C5 as the soft. Leclerc showed how good he is at managing his tyres and that once again could be the difference in Baku with a one-stop strategy the most popular choice.

McLaren And Ferrari To Lock Horns

Red Bull’s drop in form has given Mercedes, McLaren, and Ferrari time to shine on the podium in recent races. Verstappen hasn’t won a race in June at the Spanish GP and the RB20 has proved difficult to drive in recent weeks. With the triple world champion not in the hunt for a podium place this weekend, it boils down to another battle between F1’s in-form teams, McLaren and Ferrari. The Italian team brought a new floor to Monza along with other upgrades and those changes could see them do well in Baku. The Eastern European country is a good hunting ground for Leclerc, who has three pole positions in the last three years here.

Zak Brown’s McLaren team is likely going to have to make a call on whether they put their eggs in Norris’ basket as he hunts down Verstappen. Their young Australian driver Oscar Piastri showed great prowess to overtake Norris in Monza. If he finds himself in a similar position, Norris could see his title challenge curtailed by his teammate if the team doesn’t step in.

Predictions

Winner: Charles Leclerc

Podium: Charles Leclerc, Carlos Sainz, Oscar Piastri

Top 4 and 5: Lando Norris, Lewis Hamilton

Winning Margin: Over six seconds

Fastest lap: Oscar Piastri

Pole position: Charles Leclerc

First to retire: Zhou Guanyu

First car to retire: Sauber

Most Team Points: Ferrari

Both Cars Qualify for Q3 Shootout: Alpine

Practice 1/2/3 Winning Car: Leclerc/ Ferrari

Safety Car: Yes

Top 6: Max Verstappen, George Russell, Sergio Perez

Top 10: Alex Albon, Fernando Alonso, Nico Hulkenberg

Fastest pit stop: Red Bull