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F1 returned to Baku for the Azerbaijan GP this week. The 2022 season has had some fantastic races so far and it seems that the new regulations have done a great job. Despite this, the street circuit in Baku holds a special place in every driver and fan's heart, since there is always the heady anticipation of desired chaos.
The Azerbaijan GP has not been on the F1 calendar for too long, however, it is a gift that keeps on giving and is a must-watch for all F1 fans. Here's why!
Anything goes at the Azerbaijan GP
The Azerbaijan GP made its F1 debut in 2016 and has always delivered. The maiden race saw Sergio Perez scoring a surprise podium. Then, in 2017, Daniel Ricciardo bagged a victory at the street circuit after his famous three-car overtake. 2018, too, had some late race drama with Vettel going off and Bottas suffering a puncture. Let's not forget the infamous Daniel Ricciardo-Max Verstappen crash!
Finally, in 2021 the Azerbaijan GP witnessed Max Verstappen suffering from a puncture in the lead and Lewis Hamilton destroying his restart by pressing the "magic button."
When it comes to tracks, one generally looks at the layout and track characteristics to ascertain whether it will provide a good race. Not when it comes to the Azerbaijan GP, however. For this race, one just needs to look at its track record. Baku always delivers.
Mercedes could make a comeback
Mercedes turned the formbook upside down at the Spanish GP when Lewis Hamilton stormed through the field after his first lap clash to run as high as fourth in the race. At Barcelona, the upgrade package worked like a charm for the German team as the car got rid of the porpoising that it suffered from throughout the first half of the season.
Not only that, the car just came alive on the straights and in the fast sections of the track. Although the gap was still pronounced in qualifying, around half a second, the race pace was quite comparable and Mercedes boss Toto Wolff reckoned Lewis Hamilton could have been fighting for the win if not for the early race clash with Kevin Magnussen.
Mercedes suffered a minor setback at the Monaco GP, where it was caught out by the bumps on the track. But even there, George Russell's race pace was comparable to that of the frontrunners. Coming to the Azerbaijan GP, the middle sector of the track holds a lot of similarities to Monaco and Mercedes could find itself struggling in that section. At the same time, the fast-speed sections of S1 and S3 will play into the hands of the team.
While Mercedes might find it hard to challenge Red Bull and Ferrari in qualifying, there might be a chance of it staging a challenge against the top two teams in the race.
The championship battle is extremely close at the top
The championship battle became extremely interesting after the Monaco GP. The top three drivers in the championship battle at the moment are Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc, and Sergio Perez, who have 125, 116 and 110 points on the board, respectively.
There is a gap of just 15 points between the first and third driver in the standings. Any of these three drivers could walk away from the Azerbaijan GP as the championship leader.
Charles Leclerc should have won the last two races but lost out because of misfortune. Sergio Perez was the eventual winner of the Monaco GP, while Max Verstappen was somewhat on the backfoot in both the Spanish and Monaco GP. Right now, it's hard to predict who will have the edge over the weekend, but it will certainly be interesting.
Baku has a penchant for throwing curveballs in the championship. It did last season with Max Verstappen's DNF and Lewis Hamilton's restart blunder, so it could do it again and we could see a few new surprises in the championship as well.
Once the weekend is over, could we be looking at Sergio Perez leading the championship or Charles Leclerc getting back to the top? Could Max Verstappen stretch his lead at the top? The thing is, with the Azerbaijan GP, anything is possible. Now, that's a must-watch, isn't it?
Tune in on June 12, 2022, to see how things unfold at the Azerbaijan GP.
