Starting Grid 2018 Azerbaijan F1 GP
Event: Azerbaijan Grand Prix
Track: Baku street circuit.
F1 Grid 2018 Azerbaijan GP
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Lap Time | 1st Gap |
| 1 | 5 | Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | 1:41,498 | |
| 2 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1:41,677 | 0,179 |
| 3 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | 1:41,837 | 0,339 |
| 4 | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | Red Bull | 1:41,911 | 0,413 |
| 5 | 33 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1:41,994 | 0,496 |
| 6 | 7 | Kimi Räikkönen | Ferrari | 1:42,490 | 0,992 |
| 7 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Force India | 1:42,523 | 1,025 |
| 8 | 11 | Sergio Pérez | Force India | 1:42,547 | 1,049 |
| 9 | 55 | Carlos Sainz | Renault | 1:43,351 | 1,853 |
| 10 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Williams | 1:43,585 | 2,087 |
| 11 | 35 | Sergey Sirotkin | Williams | 1:43,886 | 2,388 |
| 12 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | McLaren | 1:44,019 | 2,521 |
| 13 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Sauber | 1:44,074 | 2,576 |
| 14 | 27 | Nico Hülkenberg | Renault | 1:43,066 | 1,568 |
| 15 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | 1:44,759 | 3,261 |
| 16 | 2 | Stoffel Vandoorne | McLaren | 1:44,489 | 2,991 |
| 17 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Toro Rosso | 1:44,496 | 2,998 |
| 18 | 9 | Marcus Ericsson | Sauber | 1:45,541 | 4,043 |
| 19 | 28 | Brendon Hartley | Toro Rosso | 1:57,354 | 15,856 |
| 20 | 8 | Romain Grosjean | Haas | no time | - |
Penalties:
- Nico Hulkenberg (Renault) 5 grid places penalty due to unscheduled gearbox change
2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix Tyre Compounds
Compared to last year, the selection of tyres that Pirelli brings to Baku are two steps softer, with soft, supersoft and ultrasoft nominated. One step comes from the actual selection, the next from the fact that all the compounds are a step softer than their 2017 equivalents anyway. That’s not the only important difference. This year, the Azerbaijan Grand Prix is being held two months earlier than it was previously, meaning we can expect cooler conditions.
- With the race starting just after 4pm, track temperatures cool rapidly as the sun begins to go down. None of the free practice sessions take place at exactly the same time as the race start though.
- Because Baku is a street circuit tightly enclosed by buildings, there are many areas of lights and shade, making track temperatures even harder to assess.
- The main straight is two kilometres long, which means that the tyres can cool down before the braking area at the end of it. After Spa, Baku is the second-longest lap of the season.
- Last year’s strategy was affected by safety cars and a red flag, which can play a prominent role on the narrow track – cars have often tangled in the tight confines of Baku previously.
- The winning strategy involved three tyre changes last year, with the second one taking place during the safety car period and the last one under red flag conditions. Daniel Ricciardo won the race starting from 10th position on the grid with a supersoft-soft-supersoft-supersoft strategy.
- One of the biggest challenges for drivers last year was warming up the front and rear tyres at the same rate. With cooler conditions, this problem is likely to be accentuated.
- Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull have all gone for different tyre choices, with the Mercedes and Ferrari drivers also both differing slightly in their individual selections.
Tyres available for drivers before Azerbaijan race
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