Sochi Autodrom

Interesting facts

The Sochi Autodrom was designed by Hermann Tilke and built around the coastal Olympic Park used for the 2014 Winter Olympics, with the track layout partly wrapping around the Games' own venues. Turn 3 is the lap's longest, continuously tightening corner, often compared to Istanbul Park's famous Turn 8 for the sustained lateral load it puts on drivers. At 5.848 km, the Grand Prix layout was the fifth-longest circuit on the 2021 calendar. The Russian Grand Prix ran here from 2014 to 2021; Formula 1 never returned after Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, and by late 2023 the full Grand Prix layout was replaced by a shorter permanent circuit. Construction began in July 2011 on a roughly $195.4 million Russian state budget, but the Grand Prix layout's asphalt wasn't laid until after the closing ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics, just months before the first race that October. On 1 April 2024 the venue was renamed from Sochi Autodrom to Sirius Autodrom, and it now runs races on its shorter, permanent circuit layout. The circuit is located in Sochi, Russia. Formula 1 has raced here since 2014, with 8 races held so far, most recently in 2021. The first race here was won by Lewis Hamilton, in 2014. The most recent winner here was Lewis Hamilton, in 2021. Lewis Hamilton has won here more than anyone else, 5 times. Among constructors, Mercedes has been the most successful here, with 8 wins. The lap record here is held by Lewis Hamilton, at 1:35.761 (Mercedes, 2019).

Circuit history