Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2018 — Weekend Preview

Round 4 of the 2018 Formula 1 World Championship takes the field to Baku, Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan Grand Prix — Where Chaos Meets Speed. Sebastian Vettel leads the championship with 54 points, 9 points ahead of Lewis Hamilton.

Driver Championship (entering R4):
P1: Sebastian Vettel — 54 pts (2W, 2P)
P2: Lewis Hamilton — 45 pts (0W, 2P)
P3: Valtteri Bottas — 40 pts (0W, 2P)
P4: Daniel Ricciardo — 37 pts (1W, 1P)
P5: Kimi Räikkönen — 30 pts (0W, 2P)

Constructor Championship:
P1: Mercedes — 85 pts
P2: Ferrari — 84 pts
P3: Red Bull Racing — 55 pts
P4: McLaren — 28 pts
P5: Renault — 25 pts

Baku is a balanced challenge.

Recent winners at Baku:
- 2025: Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing)
- 2024: Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
- 2023: Sergio Perez (Red Bull Racing)
- 2022: Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing)
- 2019: Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes)

Tyre strategy data will be available after practice sessions provide degradation information.

Battles to watch:

Championship battle: Sebastian Vettel vs Lewis Hamilton — 9 points separate them.

P3 vs P4: Valtteri Bottas (40) vs Daniel Ricciardo (37) — just 3 points apart.
P4 vs P5: Daniel Ricciardo (37) vs Kimi Räikkönen (30) — just 7 points apart.
P5 vs P6: Kimi Räikkönen (30) vs Nico Hulkenberg (22) — just 8 points apart.