© Getty ImagesThe Highs and Lows of BakuOnly seven races have taken place on the streets of Baku, but there has been plenty of highs and lows for the Team…
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Baku’s street circuit was first used in 2016 for the European Grand Prix. The following year it was added to the calendar as the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and it’s been there ever since (except the COVID-19-hit 2020 season).
The Team has been the most successful at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix with four wins in total, but there have also been a few lows, including one of the worst collisions between two Bulls.
At the inaugural Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Daniel Ricciardo drove a fantastic race to take the fifth win of his career.
Daniel started the race in P10 and it was carnage from the start. Before the third corner of lap one, Carlos Sainz and Daniil Kvyat had both gone off the track and Valtteri Bottas had collided with Kimi Räikkönen. Due to debris hitting his car, Daniel returned to the pits on lap six and re-joined the action in P17.
Due to more collisions and even more debris on track the race was red flagged. When it restarted other cars were suffering from issues ensuring Daniel would rise up the leader board. Towards the end of the race, Hamilton’s headrest came loose and he had to return to the pits. Sebastian Vettel, another front runner, was given a 10 second penalty which he served on lap 33 and gifted Daniel the lead, where he remained until the chequered flag and where he became the first winner of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
After the highs of the first running of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, the second running would see one of the worst results for the Bulls and it was entirely their own making. Before the race, Daniel and Max Verstappen, who had qualified P4 and P5 respectively were told they could race each other.
The pair were swapping places throughout the race and then on lap 40, Max was ahead of Daniel thanks to an overcut in the pitlane. Daniel was attacking when Max made a late defensive move to try and cover Daniel. The Australian couldn’t slowdown in time and collided into the back of Max’s car causing both to skid off track and retire from the race. After the race, Christian Horner, who was reportedly very angry said: “It was a really frustrating race for the Team today. After some hard racing between the two drivers contact was made after the pitstop resulting in the retirement of both cars. Obviously, for the Team it is hugely disappointing. We allow our drivers to race wheel-to-wheel, which they have done to great effect. There is no blame apportioned to either side. It is hugely frustrating for the Team.”
Christian then ensured that both Daniel and Max apologise to the entire Team. They also received an official reprimand from the FIA for the crash in Baku.
The 2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix was looking very promising with Max leading and Checo in second place. The pair were hoping for the Team’s first one-two since 2016.
However, with just six laps remaining, Max’s rear left tyre failed causing the Bull to spin and collide heavily into the barriers, ending his race. In the media pen after, Max said: “To retire from the lead of the race so close to the finish is pretty frustrating. I didn’t feel anything strange with the car and then suddenly the left rear went and I was in the wall quite hard. It’s not a nice place to crash. Up until that point it was a great day, the car felt perfect and I was comfortable in the lead so it felt like it would be an easy 1-2 but there are no guarantees in this sport.”
After Max’s crash in 2021, the red flags were waved with Checo now leading and Lewis Hamilton in P2. The race was going to be restarted with just two racing laps to complete. At lights out It looked like the Mercedes had got ahead of Checo, but Hamilton had overcooked the start and overshot turn one, giving Checo the easily lead. Two laps later Checo took the chequered flag and his first win in Formula One as a Bull.
2022 saw redemption for Max and the Team got the result they thought they deserved the year before.
Checo qualified in P2 with Max one place behind him and Charles Leclerc in pole position. On lap 19, the Bulls were running behind Leclerc when his power unit failed and he had to retire from the race. After that there was no catching the Bulls. Max took the win by more than 20 seconds ahead of his teammate and Checo was a further 25 seconds ahead of George Russell in third place.
“It’s a fantastic result for us on a track that never fails to deliver the unexpected,” said Christian. “We managed to capitalise on the events within the race with both drivers driving fantastically. We asked them to race each other cleanly and fairly and that’s what they did. They’re doing a great job for the Team and we’re very proud of what the whole team has achieved.”
Last year’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix saw Checo become the most successful driver at the circuit claiming his second win.
Charles Leclerc took pole, with Max in P2 and Checo in third. Max took the lead on lap four when he passed polesitter Charles Leclerc but was hindered when AlphaTauri’s Nyck de Vries stopped at the side of the track on lap 10. The Team immediately told Max to box but the Safety Car wasn’t released for another lap and when Checo got the quicker stop under the Safety Car, he jumped ahead of Max to take the lead. And from there the Mexican didn’t look back. Checo had made it a double winning weekend after taking the win in that Saturday’s sprint race as well.
The Bulls return to Baku this weekend looking to take back control of the championships. They will first head out on track on Friday from Free Practice 1 at 13:30 track time (09:30 UTC). Be sure to come back for exclusive interviews, videos and reports from the track.
