Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Better start practicing saying those three words now so that they will more easily roll off your tongue in two years. That will be 2016 and that is the year that Formula One chief Bernie Ecclestone says the racing series will be making a stop in Baku, Azerbaijan. Ecclestone, who recently warded off bribery charges met with Flavio Briatore to bring a race to Baku in what would most likely be the 2016 season and appears to have made a deal to do exactly that. Briatore, who was booted out of F1 when his Renault team was found guilty of conspiring to fix the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix, evidently signed a deal with Ecclestone that will bring him a $1 million-plus bonus for hosting the race in Baku.
Meanwhile, the IndyCar contract with the city of Long Beach expires next year and Ecclestone has already expressed an interest in returning to the southern California city for a race on the 2016 schedule if the city decides to open up the bidding for the contract. Ecclestone sent a letter to Long Beach officials last year expressing the interest and a decision on that is expected to come before next weekend’s 2014 season-opening race.
The 2014 Formula One season opens with the Australian Grand Prix on March 16, 2014.