Ten years of Formula 1 hitting the streets of Baku have given us plenty of unforgettable memories away from the asphalt. As we return to this history-rich capital for the 10th time, it is worth looking back at the quirky, wild, and genuinely brilliant moments that made this special street circuit a fan favorite.
Take last year's paddock feline, for instance. This beautiful cat stole the hearts of drivers and fans alike, becoming the ultimate star of team content. Mercedes went all out, organizing a whole photoshoot with the four-legged tabby and naming it 'Kitty Antonelli', while Ferrari wanted it to be called 'Furrari'. Even the national anthem brought its own joy last year, as passionate grid kids sang at the top of their lungs and left George Russell and Lando Norris grinning, while Lewis Hamilton pulled out his phone to record the moment.
Then there is the sheer insanity of the circuit itself. Drivers zoom past the medieval stone walls of the UNESCO-listed old town, skirting the famous castle section where Turn 8 is a ridiculously tight 7.6 metres wide—the narrowest point on the entire calendar. Naturally, this backdrop birthed the iconic 'Well done Baku' phrase, originating from trackside signs during the 2016 European Grand Prix. Former Red Bull man Daniel Ricciardo turned it into a meme after winning here in 2017—climbing back from 17th after an early pit stop—and celebrated with a trademark shoey that even dragged Lance Stroll into drinking champagne from a race-worn boot. That podium marked Stroll's first in F1, making him the youngest rookie to finish in the top three at the time.
Baku has never been short of star power off the track. Big names like Christina Aguilera, Mariah Carey, Enrique Iglesias, Jamiroquai front-man Jay Kay, and J Balvin have performed at the evening concerts over the decade. Last season, Dutch DJ Martin Garrix—a friend of Max Verstappen and Lando Norris—even had the honor of waving the chequered flag.
We also saw the birth of Franco Colapinto’s paddock essential. During just his second race weekend as a full-time Williams driver after being promoted mid-way through the season, the Argentinian showed up with a leather-bound cup and metal straw, introducing the paddock to mate. Before him, back at the inaugural 2016 event, Fernando Alonso served as the circuit's official ambassador, trying his hand at carpet-making at the Azer Ilme Carpet Weaving Centre and touring the city on a gifted mountain bike. Meanwhile, local fans got creative with unique viewpoints, like the one who filmed Oscar Piastri crashing into the barriers on the first lap last year, capturing the McLaren driver's lonely walk back to the paddock.
More iconic memories include Sebastian Vettel pulling on a traditional Azerbaijani Arakhchin hat alongside his Pirelli cap on the podium at the 2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, celebrating his 122nd top-three result and the very first career podium for Aston Martin. And most recently, in the hours after the 2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, former Ferrari teammates Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz found themselves embarking on an impromptu road trip in a rented van after bad weather prevented their plane from landing in Nice. With Leclerc joking on Instagram about the detour and panning the camera over to Sainz—fresh from his first podium for Williams—it proved that some bonds survive the paddock gates.
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