Announcement

Revealed: New home for Russian GP from 2023

Formula One's Russian Grand Prix will move from Sochi to St Petersburg, with the first race on the new Igora Drive circuit set for 2023.

The Russian Grand Prix made its World Championship debut in 2014, racing around the Sochi Olympic Park built for the 2014 Winter Olympics.

But the Russian Grand Prix will now race at the newly built Igora Drive from 2023.

A statement from Formula One read: "Formula One is delighted to confirm that the Russian Grand Prix will move to the Autodrom Igora Drive in St Petersburg from 2023.

"We are looking forward to racing in a hugely exciting location that includes 10 professional tracks for racing and testing over approximately 100 hectares.

"It is located 54km from St Petersburg, was designed by German architect Hermann Tilke and in 2020 received its FIA Grade 1 licence.

"We will be providing more details on the race in the coming months, and we are looking forward to racing in Sochi for the next two years."

Igora Drive was built by Hermann Tilke’s firm, which recently created the layout for the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix set to take place in December.

The Russian circuit was meant to host international motorsport for the first time last year as part of the DTM and W Series calendar, but the COVID-affected motorsport season led to its cancellation.

The 4km (2.5-mile) circuit features elevation changes, a long start/finish straight, and a technical first sector, before opening into a high-speed flowing layout.

The switch to St Petersburg means a return to a city of historical significance for Formula One. While it was decades before the World Championship began, Grand Prix racing took place in the city in 1913 and 1914 before the outbreak of World War I.

Returning to the calendar

Turkish Grand Prix

A home of special memories for Team Silverstone. The Turkish Grand Prix returns to the calendar for 2021. Get the lowdown the latest calendar changes on our season pages.

Get up to speed

The St Petersburg news comes hot on the heels of several announcements made by Formula One, highlighted by the re-addition of the Turkish Grand Prix to the calendar.

The Istanbul event takes the place of the Singapore Grand Prix on October 3 due to ongoing safety and logistic concerns brought about by COVID-19.

Turkey had initially stepped into the 2021 calendar in place of the cancelled Canadian Grand Prix but was forced to drop out swiftly due to global travel restrictions.

The latest return of Turkey means the 2021 Formula One calendar will remain at 23 races, and the championship will remain flexible to react to the changing global situation.

A statement from Formula One said: "After discussions with other promoters, we are confident that we will be able to travel to the following race under our strict safety protocols.

"The Formula One community will continue to travel this season with stringent safety measures that has allowed us to travel safely this season.

"So far this season we have conducted over 44,000 tests with 27 positive cases at a rate of 0.06%, with most coming during the earlier part of the season.

"Alongside this, a significant proportion of the F1 community has been vaccinated already, and we are confident that all will have had the opportunity to do so by the end of the summer.

"We will continue to operate in a way that protects the safety of our personnel and the communities we visit."

Elsewhere, Formula One’s season finale at the Yas Marina Circuit will feature a revised layout following changes made to several of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix’s corners.

Designed to spice up the racing, the headline feature is a high-speed banked corner at the end of the second long straight.

There is also a change to the hairpin, with the preceding chicane removed to create more avenues for overtaking, alongside a revised hotel section that will increase speeds.