Russian Grand Prix

• 1. Introduction

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  The Russian Grand Prix carries a history that stretches back to 1913, when cars raced through the streets near Saint Petersburg, long before Formula One existed. Then came decades of silence, broken attempts, bureaucratic walls, and the rise and sudden fall of a modern race that lasted only eight seasons before war ended it. What made Russia such a difficult country for motorsport to take hold in? And how did a Winter Olympics venue in the Black Sea resort of Sochi become, however briefly, one of the world's premier racing destinations? The answers involve the Cold War, a Formula One power broker named Bernie Ecclestone, a dominant car manufacturer that never lost a single race, and a conflict that cancelled everything in a matter of days.

• 2. Saint Petersburg Origins

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  Georgy Suvorin crossed the finish line first in 1913, making him the winner of the very first Russian Grand Prix. He drove a Benz, finishing in a time of 2 hours, 23 minutes, and 54.6 seconds. Ivan Ivanov came second in a Russo-Balt, and René Nothombe in a Métallurgique claimed third. The following year, 1914, saw German driver Willy Scholl win in another Benz, with Stepan Ovsyannikov in a Vauxhall taking second and Eugenio Beria d'Argentine in an Aquila Italiana finishing third. Both races ran on a circuit in Saint Petersburg, the capital of the Russian Empire at the time. The First World War and then the Russian Civil War brought the sport to a halt. Once the Soviet Union replaced the Russian Empire, no effort was made to revive the race, and it would not return for a century.

• 3. Decades of Failed Attempts

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  A proposed race in Moscow in the early 1980s, planned under the title "Grand Prix of the Soviet Union," was provisionally scheduled for the 21st of August 1983. The Andropov regime's bureaucratic barriers killed it before a wheel turned. Bernie Ecclestone, who ran Formula One's commercial operations for decades, kept pushing. His persistence eventually helped Hungary become the first communist country on the Formula One calendar, but Russia remained out of reach. The Soviet Union collapsed at the end of 1991 without ever hosting a world championship race. In 2001, President Vladimir Putin personally backed a project for a circuit near Pulkovo Airport, but it never progressed. A 2003 proposal for a track in Moscow's Molzhaninovsky District fell apart over a commercial dispute. A later project at the village of Fedyukovo, about 77 km from Moscow, produced the Moscow Raceway, designed by Hermann Tilke. That circuit was completed and hosted Formula Renault 3.5 and 2.0 Series rounds in 2012, as well as the FIA GT1 World Championship and the Superbike World Championship, making them the first internationally accredited motorsport events on Russian soil. Formula One, however, was still waiting.

• 4. The Sochi Era

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  On the 14th of October 2010, the new Russian Grand Prix was officially announced, with a debut set for 2014 and a run through to 2020 under a seven-year deal. Vitaly Petrov had joined Renault that same year, becoming Russia's first Formula One driver, which added public momentum to the project. The chosen venue was Sochi, already preparing to host the 2014 Winter Olympics. The Sochi Autodrom measured 5.9 km and wound through the venues of Sochi's Olympic Park, making it one of the more unusual circuits on the calendar. The inaugural race ran on the 12th of October 2014. Lewis Hamilton won, with teammate Nico Rosberg second. That one-two finish also gave Mercedes their first constructors' championship in Formula One. Every race held at Sochi through to 2021 was won by a Mercedes-powered car, a record unmatched by any other team at that venue.

• 5. Crashes, Penalties and Drama

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  Carlos Sainz Jr. hit the Tecpro barriers at turn 13 during free practice at the 2015 race after losing control of his car. He was declared fit to race and the weekend continued. Sergio Pérez lost third place on the final lap that year when Kimi Räikkönen and Valtteri Bottas collided, but retook the position after Räikkönen received a 30-second post-race penalty. The 2016 race at Sochi moved to the 1st of May and opened with a multi-car crash at turn 2 that eliminated Nico Hülkenberg, Esteban Gutiérrez, and Rio Haryanto on the first lap. Sebastian Vettel was struck twice by Daniil Kvyat, once at turn 2 and again at turn 3, spinning him out of the race. Days later, Red Bull demoted Kvyat back to Toro Rosso and promoted 18-year-old Max Verstappen into his seat. Valtteri Bottas secured his first career Formula One win at Sochi in 2017, beating Vettel by just 0.7 seconds. In 2019, Sebastian Vettel led from the front until a MGU-K failure on lap 26 ended his race, and a wheel-nut failure sent George Russell into the barriers at turn 9 shortly after.

• 6. Cancellation and Aftermath

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  Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Formula One suspended the Russian Grand Prix contract on the 24th of February 2022, stating it would be "impossible to hold it under the current circumstances." World champions Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen had separately called for the race to be cancelled. On the 1st of March 2022, the cancellation was made official. Two days later, on the 3rd of March 2022, Formula One announced it had terminated the entire contract for future races. A planned move to Igora Drive, a circuit about 54 km north of Saint Petersburg that had opened in 2019, was abandoned along with it. Igora Drive had been due to receive a track extension that would have taken its layout from 4.086 km and 15 turns to 5.182 km and 19 turns in time for a 2023 debut. That work never happened. Lewis Hamilton won the Russian Grand Prix five times in total, in 2014, 2015, 2018, 2019, and 2021, and Valtteri Bottas won twice, in 2017 and 2020, leaving Mercedes with all eight world championship victories at the event.