Formula One has announced a new three-year contract for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, which will see the pinnacle of motorsport continue to visit the center-Asian country until 2026. In 2016, Nico Rosberg won the inaugural European Grand Prix on the streets of Baku, which was then known as the European Grand Prix. Since then, the track has produced a new champion each year, including Daniel Ricciardo, Lewis Hamilton, Valtteri Bottas, Sergio Perez, and Max Verstappen.

“The Baku City Circuit has become a well-known venue for Formula 1,” stated Stefano Domenicali, President and CEO of Formula 1. It has hosted some of the most riveting races in recent memory. “It is an extraordinary circuit that normally provides enormous drama and has hosted some of the most captivating races in recent memory. We are thrilled to expand our relationship with the nation of Azerbaijan and look forward to our continued development together.”

Minister of Youth and Sports of Azerbaijan, Farid Gayibov, added, “We are thrilled to confirm our ongoing partnership with Method 1.” Since we first hosted this event in 2016, the sport’s economic, social, and cultural impact on our city and nation has been extraordinary. The Formula 1 AZERBAIJAN GRAND PRIX will now continue to inspire and enthral our fans for the next several years. The previous six races have been some of the greatest and most extraordinary in the sport’s lengthy heritage, and we look forward to generating much more magical moments for F1 supporters at home and abroad more than the subsequent three years, beginning this weekend. In addition, today’s agreement occurred during a weekend in which we hosted a record number of supporters from more than 100 countries, making this moment even more special.”

Baku is now widely recognised for the annually tumultuous races it hosts. Aside from the inaugural race in 2016, which was very straightforward, there has been some drama on the street circuit every year, including such epic moments as Hamilton brake testing Vettel and him subsequently making purposeful wheel-to-wheel contact with the seven-time winner, and also the intra-Red Bull collision between Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen that planted the seeds for Ricciardo’s departure from Red Bull. The course was designed by the renowned circuit architect Hermann Tilke and has the longest flat-out sections on the calendar, where the fastest drivers reach speeds approaching 350 kilometres per hour. It also contains the narrowest segment on the circuit, which is only 7 metres wide.