Baku City Circuit

Motor racing circuit in Baku, Azerbaijan.

Baku's Old City Street Circuit

Baku's street circuit squeezes past the Maiden Tower and around the Old City, then releases the cars onto 2.2 km of flat out running along Neftchilar Avenue.

Few circuits change character as abruptly as Baku. Laid out on the streets of the Azerbaijani capital near Baku Boulevard, the Baku City Circuit joined the calendar in 2016, when its race was billed as the European Grand Prix, and from 2017 it became the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. An earlier debut had been discussed before 2016 was settled on.

Hermann Tilke's lap runs counterclockwise for 6.003 km. It starts beside Azadliq Square, circles Government House and heads west along a straight of about a kilometer toward the Palace of the Shirvanshahs and the Maiden Tower. There the road narrows to 7.6 m, which is not much room for one Formula 1 car and very little for two, as it climbs around the Old City. Then comes a 2.2 km charge along Neftchilar Avenue to the line. Many drivers have praised the blend of long straights and slow, technical sections, with walls that forgive nothing. It is fast, too: in qualifying for the first race, Williams recorded 378 km/h for Valtteri Bottas, beyond the previous unofficial Formula 1 record.

The teething troubles came mostly from the street furniture. In 2016 Pirelli found that loose kerb bolts had cut most of the rear tires used in practice, and a loose drain cover badly damaged Bottas's car the same weekend. Drain covers struck again in 2019, when George Russell hit one and first practice was cancelled. Drivers also raised concerns about the lack of run off.

Baku has held 10 championship rounds from 2016 to 2026, and its list of winners is as varied as the lap itself. Nico Rosberg won the first and Daniel Ricciardo the 2017 race, Sergio Pérez and Max Verstappen have two wins each, Oscar Piastri won in 2024, and in 2026 George Russell won for Mercedes.

Every Grand Prix here

Scroll to Top