There will be no Formula 1 race on Sunday. The Azerbaijan Grand Prix will be run on Saturday, with qualifying taking place on Friday and the weekend beginning with practice on Thursday. The change is being made because Sunday is Azerbaijan’s Remembrance Day, turning Baku into an unusual early-weekend sprint before Formula 1 immediately moves on to the next challenge. And this is only the beginning: Azerbaijan opens a triple header, followed by the relocated Bahrain Grand Prix at Malaysia’s Sepang circuit and then Singapore. Three races, three very different circuits, three consecutive weekends.
Baku also brings a familiar face back to the Red Bull garage. Isack Hadjar returns after missing the Dutch, Italian and Spanish Grands Prix with his wrist injury. Liam Lawson, who stepped into the Red Bull seat and scored points at Zandvoort and Madrid, moves back to Racing Bulls, while Yuki Tsunoda returns to his reserve role.
Then there is Lando Norris, who arrives in Baku with Lewis Hamilton only five points ahead of him in the championship. Since McLaren's performance improved around the Hungarian Grand Prix, Norris has won two of the last four races and has looked increasingly capable of turning strong pace into results. He won in Hungary and the Netherlands, took pole in Madrid and was on course for another victory before a badly timed Virtual Safety Car dropped him to third. Hamilton, meanwhile, has slipped to third after Ferrari's recent run without a podium. A place gained in Baku would be enough for Norris to move ahead of him.
Away from the championship fight, Esteban Ocon arrives in Baku as a free agent for 2027. The Haas driver says discussions about his future are still ongoing, while making it clear that his intention remains to continue in Formula 1. With only three points so far this season and Haas yet to confirm its 2027 line-up, the coming races could become increasingly important for Ocon as teams make their decisions for next year.
And then there is Baku itself, a circuit where the walls are close, the straights are long and the race has rarely followed the script. Only three Azerbaijan Grands Prix have been won from pole, while seven different drivers have won the nine races held here.