The Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix starts today, April 27.
This will be the fourth race of the season. Auto sports fans will focus their attention on the Land of Fire after Australia, Bahrain and China. German pilot of Mercedes-Benz Sebastian Vettel won in the first two previous races. Generally, season 21 consists of Grand Prix races:
Date Grand Prix Track Length (meters) Circuit
March 23 – 25 Australia Albert-Park 5303 58
April 6 – 8 Bahrain Sahir 5412 57
April 12 – 15 China Shanghai 5451 56
April 27 – 29 Azərbaijan Baku 6003 51
May 11 – 13 Spain Barcelona 4655 66
May 25 – 27 Monaco Monte-Carlo 3337 78
June 8 – 10 Canada Montreal 4361 70
June 22 – 24 France Le Castellet 5842 53
June 29– July 1 Australia Spielberg 4318 71
July 6 – 8 Great Britain Silverstone 5891 52
July 20 – 22 Germany Hockenheim 4574 67
July 27 – 29 Hungary Hungaroring 4381 70
August 24 – 26 Belgium Spa 7004 44
August 31– September 2 Italy Monza 5793 53
September 14 – 16 Singapore Marina Bay 5065 61
September 28 – 30 Russia Sochi 5848 52
October 5 – 7 Japan Suzuka 5807 53
October 19 – 21 USA Ostin 5513 56
October 26 – 28 Mexico Mexico city 4304 71
November 9 – 11 Brazil São Paulo 4309 71
November 23 – 25 Abu Dhabi Yas-Marina 5554 55
Sebastian Vettel took the first place in ranking of the pilots. He has 54 points. Mercedes pilots close up the trio. Lewis Hamilton, the winner of last year's world championship, is the second with 45 points. He is ahead of his team-mate Valtteri Bottas by 5 points. Daniel Ricciardo, the winner of the Grand Prix of the 2017, is in the 4th place with 37 points.In total, 6 pilots came to Baku without a score.
Place Pilot Team Number Australia Bahrain China Point
1 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 5 1 1 8 54
2 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 44 2 33 4 45
3 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 77 8 2 2 40
4 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull 3 4 DNF 1 37
5 Kimi Räikkönen Ferrari 7 3 DNF 3 30
6 Fernando Alonso McLaren 14 5 7 7 22
7 Nico Hülkenberg Renault 27 7 6 6 22
8 Max Verstappen Red Bull 33 6 DNF 5 18
9 Pierre Gasly Toro Rosso 10 DNF 4 18 12
10 Kevin Magnussen Haas 20 DNF 5 10 11
11 Stoffel Vandoorne McLaren 22 9 8 13 6
12 Carlos Sainz Renault 55 10 11 9 3
13 Marcus Ericsson Sauber 9 DNF 9 16 2
14 Esteban Ocon Force İndia 31 12 10 12 1
15 Sergio Pérez Force İndia 11 11 16 12 0
16 Charles Leclerc Sauber 16 13 12 19 0
17 Romain Grosjean Haas 8 DNF 13 17 0
18 Lance Stroll Williams 18 14 14 14 0
19 Sergey Sirotkin Williams 35 DNF 15 15 0
20 Brendon Hartley Toro Rosso 28 15 17 20 0
Winner of previous year's Constructors Cup is Mercedes team. German representative has 85 points. Ferrari is in second place with 84 and Red Bull has 55 points.
Place Team Country Point
1 Mercedes Germany 85
2 Ferrari Italy 84
3 Red Bull Racing Tag Heuer Austria 55
4 McLaren Renault Great Britain 28
5 Renault Great Britain 25
6 Scuderia Toro Ross Honda Italy 12
7 Haas Ferrari USA 11
8 Sauber Ferrari Switzerland 2
9 Force İndia Mercedes India 1
10 Williams Mercedes Great Britain 0
In three days Baku will host Formula 2 along with Formula 1. For this reason, the Grand Prix's calendar covers both. Free races at Formula 1 will be realized on April 27. The first free ride will take place from 13:00 to 14:30, the second one from 17:00 to 18:30. On April 28, the third free ride will take place from 14:00 to 15:00, and the tour will take place from 17:00 to 18:00. Next day, a pilot parade will be held from 14:40 to 15:10. The State Anthem of the Republic of Azerbaijan will sound at 15:56. Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2018 will be started at 16:10. The race will cover 51 circuits or 120 minutes.
Calendar of Azerbaijan Grand Prix
April 27
11:00 - 11:45. "Formula 2" - Free-ride
13:00 - 14:30. "Formula 1" - First free ride
15:00 - 15:30. "Formula 2" - Sequencing tour
17:00 - 18:30. "Formula 1" - Second free ride
April 28
12:00 - 13:05. "Formula 2" - First race (29 circuits or 60 minutes)
14:00 - 15:00. "Formula 1" - Third free ride
17:00 - 18:00. "Formula 1" - Sequencing tour
April 29
13:10 - 14:00. "Formula 2" - The second race (21 circuits or 45 minutes)
14:40 - 15:10. The parade of pilots
15:00 - 15:25. Opening ceremony
15: 56-15: 58. State anthem
16: 10-18: 00. "Formula 1" - Grand Prix (51 circuits or 120 minutes)
Along with the race, Azerbaijan Grand Prix will also have entertainment.
"Formula 1" Fan Zone will be presented new entertainments to auto sports lovers along the Seaside Boulevard on April 26-29. The event will be held on April 26 from 12:00 to 21:00, on April 27-28, from 10:00 to 19:00 and on April 29 from 10:00 to 14:00. In addition, musical entertainment program will be held on April 27-29 at the Baku Crystal Hall.
Four-day ticket buyers will participate in Pit Stop Trip on April 26 from 14: 00 to 15: 30. During the walk, the audience will see how the F1 teams prepare for the race in the garages, entering the Pit Stop.
The entrance to Pit Stop Trip will be from Absheron tribune in "Formula 1" Fan Zone.
Moreover, autographed sessions will take place at the Formula 1 zone in the Fan Zone at 11:00 am on April 27-29, with the participation of all pilots participating in the current Grand Prix. Autograph sessions will be held at various hours from April 11 to 9 with the participation of all pilots in the Fan Zone. During the sessions, fans will be able to take pictures and autographs face-to-face with their favorite pilots.
This year, the audience will have the opportunity to get acquainted with the Baku City Population, along with the new pilots of Formula One. On April 28, a new question-and-answer session will be held with F1 pilots from 15:30 to 16:00 in the Fan Zone.
Also, after the races on April 26-28, the track will be open for the audience. Special buses will also be available during the tour. The audience can get down to the stops at different places of the tour and familiarize with the peculiarities of Baku City Circuit.
Unlike previous years, this year the opening ceremony of the audience will take place before the Pilots’ Parade. Immediately after the opening of the event, pilots will welcome spectators around the track during a tour in the City of Baku on a special transport.
Shortly afterwards, the hymn ceremony will be held before the start of the race. After the performance of the anthem of Azerbaijan, the pilots will approach the bolids located on the grid line and will make their final preparations for the race. According to the new rules, this year there will be no grid girls and pilots will be accompanied by 7-10 year old children only at the hymn.
The audience will be able to compete in simulators owned by Baku City Circuit and Formula 1 located in "Formula 1" Fan Zone. The audience with the highest results in these competitions will be awarded. In addition, various types of entertaining games, including pit-stop competitions will also be held.
All ticket holders will be able to participate in concerts and entertainment programs from April 27 to 29 for free. On April 27, Jamiroquai band will get on stage and then an entertainment program will be held with DJ Afrojack at night. Axwell Λ Ingrosso and Christina Aguilera will perform on April 28. Dua Lipa and Martin Solveig on April 29. This year concert program will be held at Baku Crystal Hall. Special buses will be operated between Azneft and Crystal Hall for convenience of visitors.
Throughout the entertainment zones, mobile actors will perform adding enthusiasm to the excitement of the races. Moreover, mobile performances, circus, balance shows and pantomime actors will add more fun.
A special driving school will be organized for the youngest guests of the race at weekend. Here, children will be able to learn traffic rules in a fun and free environment. In addition, the entertainment center will be operating in the form of a helmet for the younger audience. Children will enjoy a full range of interactive and educational games.
Different backgrounds, including the "Formula 1" Grand Prix podium and hashtags with sculptures and mascots of pilots depicting them, wall and surface paintings, tracks, race tracks, national ornaments and retro cars will be presented for taking selfies and photos.
report.az