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The Sochi Autodrome is hosting this weekend’s Russian Grand Prix.
Having made its debut on the 2014 F1 calendar, the Russian GP has been dominated by Mercedes and has won every year.
While Mercedes has thrived in Russia, Red Bull has never achieved a podium, a trend Max Verstappen hopes to finish this weekend with the Dutchman 80 points behind championship leader Lewis Hamilton.
Valtteri Bottas has typically done well in Russia, winning his first race in 2017. He was on track to win in 2018 before he was ordered to trade Hamilton in aid of his title bid against Sebastian Vettel.
It is now or never for the Finn with the difference to Hamilton at 55 points.
Looking at the midfield, McLaren has a 14-point lead over Racing Point, while a strong racing streak has allowed Renault to move to fifth place ahead of Ferrari.
What happened last time?
It was another 1-2 for Mercedes, as Hamilton scored another win ahead of Bottas.
Verstappen’s early retirement allowed Alexander Albon to have a free race on the podium, claiming him in the closing laps when he beat Daniel Ricciardo on the outside at Turn 1.
What to expect from this weekend
Mercedes is likely to dominate this weekend, but with warmer temperatures on the track, don’t rule out Red Bull entirely.
Renault tends to do well on circuits with long straights and slow-speed corners; Watch out for Ricciardo one more time.
Dry conditions are forecast with no chance of rain.
Pirelli has nominated the C5, C4 and C3 tires for this weekend, which are the softest tires available in its compound range.
