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Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix Preparations Underway In Baku

By Vusala Abbasova April 9, 2018

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2017 Azerbaijan Grand Prix winner Daniel Ricciardo salutes the fans from the winners' stand, June 25, 2017, Baku, Azerbaijan / F1 Experiences

Motorsport fans, officials, and event managers in Baku are gearing up for the city’s third Formula 1 race, which will take place from April 27-29 along the Caspian Sea promenade.

Azerbaijan’s Youth and Sports Minister Azad Rahimov said 70 percent of preparations for the 2018 Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix have been completed, and everything is on track to be completed in time for the opening day of the race.

“The preparatory work is going on full swing,” Nigar Arpadarai, the head of marketing and communications for the Baku City Circuit, told Caspian News. The Baku City Circuit has been responsible for the past three years for organizing and managing preparations for the race.

The circuit measures six kilometers, or about 3.73 miles, of racetrack that cuts right through the city’s central and heavily visited areas. Arpadarai’s crew is responsible for, among other things, erecting viewing stands and security barriers to keep spectators safe and the city fully functioning throughout the three days of jam-packed concerts and other entertainment events.

Because April tends to be a rainy month in Azerbaijan the planned concerts, which were held in the open air in previous years, will take place in Crystal Hall.

“The biggest change this year is related to the entertainment program, which will be much larger and diversified, meaning that we will have a lot of entertainment on the boulevard, including different shows, playing zones, and separate zones for children and tourists, zones representing Azerbaijani culture,” Arpadarai said.

Christina Aguilera, Jamiroquai and Dua Lipa will perform in Baku for the event. After-parties are also planned to kick off with world-renowned DJs such as AfroJack, Martin Solveig and Axwell & Ingrosso.

The Caspian region will host Grand Prix races twice during the 2018 season. The Baku City Circuit will take place in Azerbaijan from April 27-29, while the Sochi Autodrom race, in Russia, will run from September 28-30.