Formula 1 heads to Baku for Round 15, with the entire weekend shuffled a day earlier than usual to avoid clashing with Azerbaijan's Day of Remembrance on Sunday. It arrives under warm, dry skies throughout, but the story of this weekend won't be heat or rain, it'll be wind, as conditions swing from gentle to genuinely strong and back again over the three days.
With practice on Thursday and Friday building into Friday's Qualifying and Saturday's race, managing the shifting breeze through Baku's high-speed sections and unforgiving castle corners will matter far more than any tyre degradation story this time round.
Here's the weekend's weather watch:
Thursday: FP1 and FP2 take place under sunny skies and a gentle breeze, with temperatures sitting around 26°C through both sessions and a high of 27°C for the day. Winds stay light and manageable and there's no chance of rain at any point.
Friday: FP3 and Qualifying run into a noticeably different day, cooler than Thursday at around 23°C but marked by strong winds and sunny intervals. Gusts build sharply through the afternoon, right through the Qualifying window, making car balance and confidence on the walls the defining challenge of the session.
Saturday: Race day settles back into sunny skies and a fresh breeze, with temperatures around 24-25°C for the race start. Wind eases from Friday's peak but still lingers into the afternoon, keeping the long pit straight and castle section unpredictable even in fully dry conditions.
