Mercedes aim to keep their 100% Sochi win record, while Hamilton hopes to keep his 100% completion record in Russia. Here are the milestones and records which could be broken at the 2021 Russian Grand Prix!
THE MILESTONES
The 2021 Russian Grand Prix will be the 1,050th World Championship Formula 1 race. It will be the tenth Russian Grand Prix since the event was first held in 1913, and the eighth Russian Grand Prix to be held as a round of the World Championship.
This will be the fifth race to be held on 26th September. It’s the first race to be held on this date since the 2010 Singapore Grand Prix.
Lap 30 of the 2021 Russian Grand Prix will be the 400th racing lap to take place at Sochi Autodrom in F1 history.
This will be the first Russian Grand Prix in which Romain Grosjean has not lined up on the grid.
THE RECORDS TO BREAK
A victory for Lewis Hamilton at the 2021 Russian Grand Prix would mark his 100th win in Formula 1, making him the first driver to reach the milestone.
If Hamilton scores half a point over the race weekend, he will become the first driver to have scored 4,000 points during his Formula 1 career.
Mercedes have won all seven Russian Grands Prix held so far at Sochi Autodrom. A win for any other team would end Mercedes’ winning streak at the track and make them the second team to have won here.
Lewis Hamilton is currently tied with Nico Rosberg for most pole positions at the Sochi Autodrom. Hamilton will set a new outright record for most Russian Grand Prix poles should he set the fastest Saturday lap time for a third time this weekend. Sebastian Vettel, Valtteri Bottas or Charles Leclerc could equal the current record.
The record for most podium finishes at the Russian Grand Prix belongs to Lewis Hamilton, who has finished in the top three here on six occasions. He could extend the record to seven this weekend, or his existing record could be equalled by Valtteri Bottas.
If Lewis Hamilton leads eighteen laps of the 2021 Russian Grand Prix, he will become the first driver to have led 1,000km at Sochi Autodrom. Additionally, if Hamilton leads 43 laps of the 2021 Russian Grand Prix, he will become the first driver to have led 200 laps at the circuit. Valtteri Bottas could become the second driver to have led 100 laps here if he leads seven laps of Sunday’s Grand Prix.
Mercedes will become the first team to have scored 300 points at Sochi Autodrom should their drivers score 24 points between them at the 2021 Russian Grand Prix. Meanwhile, eleven points would see Red Bull become the third team to have scored 100 points at the track.
Lewis Hamilton is the only driver to have completed all 370 racing laps so far at Sochi Autodrom. Should Hamilton retire from the race, Kimi Raikkonen, Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez could overtake his record tally of laps completed at the Russian Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton and Sergio Perez are the only drivers to score in all seven Russian Grands Prix so far. They could extend their record of most points-scoring appearances at the event to eight this weekend. If neither Hamilton nor Perez score, Valtteri Bottas could equal the duo’s current record.
Daniel Ricciardo currently shares the record for most retirements at the Russian Grand Prix with Romain Grosjean. Ricciardo could record a record-breaking fourth retirement here this weekend, while Sebastian Vettel or Carlos Sainz could equal the existing record.
If Sebastian Vettel, Fernando Alonso, Carlos Sainz or Lance Stroll are out on the first lap, they would equal Nico Hulkenberg and Romain Grosjean’s record for most first lap retirements at the Russian Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas are the only drivers to have reached Q3 in all seven Russian Grands Prix so far. If neither driver qualifies in the top ten, Daniel Ricciardo could equal them as the driver with the most top ten qualifications at the track. Hamilton, Bottas, Lando Norris and Esteban Ocon will all be hoping to maintain their 100% Q3 appearance records at the circuit.
If Lewis Hamilton, or any other British driver, takes pole position this weekend, Britain will equal Germany as the nation with the most pole positions at Sochi Autodrom. Alternatively, Sebastian Vettel could extend German drivers’ record tally of poles here to four.
Carlos Sainz and Lance Stroll currently share the record for most Q2 eliminations at the Russian Grand Prix with Nico Hulkenberg and Daniil Kvyat. Either driver could record their fourth Q2 exit at the circuit this weekend, while Sergio Perez, Sebastian Vettel, Pierre Gasly and Fernando Alonso could equal the record.
If Yuki Tsunoda, Mick Schumacher or Nikita Mazepin fail to reach the chequered flag, they will join a group of five drivers with a 100% non-finish rate at the Russian Grand Prix. The drivers currently in the group are Brendon Hartley, Kamui Kobayashi, Max Chilton, Rio Haryanto and Robert Kubica.
