Williams: Baku presents unique challenges for cars and drivers
The Williams team is looking forward to racing on the streets of Baku and having fun. However, the English team is expecting a challenging weekend.
This weekend, Formula 1 cars head to Baku. Like Monaco, it is a street circuit. However, each section of the track has its own specificity, which adds an additional challenge to setting up the car correctly, as stated by Dave Robson, chief engineer at Williams.
« It’s great to be able to go back for the first time since 2019 in the streets of Baku. This circuit presents unique challenges for cars and drivers. Although it’s a city circuit, it has long straight lines conducive to overtaking. The narrow part around the castle is the twisty part of the track. »
« Each part of the track offers something different, all against the backdrop of the city of Baku and its coastline. The curves of the roads, significant changes in gradient, and the varying width of the track are all factors that add to the challenge and make it very difficult to set up the car to be competitive throughout the 6 km lap.
This Tuesday, Pirelli announced that it was bringing its softest tires for the Azerbaijan race. A choice that could make the engineers’ task difficult. « Pirelli brought their softest tires for this event, and they are the same ones we used in Monaco. However, the behavior is risky to be different on this long and demanding track. »
The drivers eager to hit the track
George Russell is eager to race in the streets of Baku, and hopes to shine on a track where luck has not always been on his side. “I can’t wait to be in Baku. I have mixed feelings about this track; it’s one of my favorite circuits, but I’ve never had much luck here. Nevertheless, I’m looking forward to it and we’ll see how we do.”
Nicholas Latifi is looking forward to hitting the track on a city circuit, which he particularly excelled on in Formula 2. “I am excited to get back on track, especially with the second consecutive race on a city circuit, which is always a lot of fun. I had Monaco as my first experience on a city circuit in Formula 1, and it was very enjoyable.”
« Now I can’t wait to drive between the walls of Baku. It’s a circuit where I had a lot of success in Formula 2. I’m looking forward to the challenge of driving in a Formula 1 which, I’m sure, will be difficult. There are many very long straight lines and we hope to have more fun than last time in Monaco. I am looking forward to hitting the track.
