As much as there are people wanting to dislike Russia, for political and
humanitarian reasons, this works as a standalone venue and it works as a
grand prix circuit. For the race fans here there are plenty of restaurants
and bars by the Black Sea, even an Irish bar.
3) Who to watch
Given the nature of the first two-thirds of the circuit, it is no surprise
that the Mercedes-powered cars dominated the front end of the grid in
practice. We have to take practice, as we always say, with a pinch of salt.
Kevin Magnussen impressed to finish second, but as a general trend McLaren
have tended to run less fuel on Fridays.
Equally, explaining why Williams, often fast elsewhere when there is an
emphasis on power, were one second off Lewis Hamilton is not easy. However,
it seems that McLaren’s pace was genuine. Why was Hamilton so much quicker
than the others? It could be that on one particular lap he hooked up all
three sectors, but he has been on a roll of late. After an impressive win in
Suzuka, he remains favourite for this weekend.