The Russian Grand Prix is one of the newer events of the Formula 1 World Championship calendar and, this year, it’s also the home race for one of our drivers, Daniil Kvyat. There have been 6 Russian GPs to date, all of them held at Sochi, meaning that F1 in Russia has only been in existence since 2014, although there was a Russian Grand Prix held in 1913 and 1914 in St. Petersburg, but there was no F1 back in those days, so it’s not really relevant.

Russian GP and the Olympics

Formerly known as the Sochi Olympic Park Circuit, it now goes by the name of Sochi Autodrom. As it name suggest, it runs through the Olympic Park, on roads constructed for the 2014 Winter Games – albeit always with the intention of being converted for F1 once the Olympic flame was extinguished.

The Hermann Tilke-designed track is one of the longest in F1 and is the fulfillment of a long-standing desire to take the sport to Russia that stretches back well into the Soviet era, thus turning the dream of having Formula 1 in Russia into reality.

This year, the Sochi Grand Prix takes place in Autumn, so it’s unlikely that visitors will be swimming in the Black Sea, on whose shores the city is set. Nevertheless, the mountain scenery and warm sunshine still makes this an attractive holiday destination.

All six races held to date have been won by the Silver Arrows: four wins for Lewis Hamilton and one apiece for Valtteri Bottas and Nico Rosberg. The 2019 Russian Grand Prix was won by the Englishman.