F1: Russian GP To Move From Sochi To St. Petersburg In 2023

The Russian GP has often happened at the scenic yet boring Sochi circuit which has mostly paid host to one-sided races with limited overtaking. That's coming to an end as the Russian GP will have a new home starting 2023 when it shifts to the Autodrom Igora Drive which is another race track designed by Hermann Tilke in St Petersburg. 

The venue received a grad 1 status by the FIA at the end of 2020 which will now make it the second race track in the world's largest country by landmass. 

The track itself is 54 kilometres away from St Petersburg and just 150 kilometres away from the Finnish border, home to Valtteri Bottas and Kimi Raikkonen, though the way things are going by the time the race happens, the two drivers may not be in F1. The track has 10 different layouts and spans a space of 100 hectares. 

The Russian GP has usually been a Mercedes stronghold 

"I am pleased to confirm following joint intensive work with our Russian partners and detailed assessment of Igora Drive - Formula 1 will be racing at that amazing circuit from 2023," said F1 President and CEO Stefano Domenicali.

"I am impressed by St Petersburg and believe that the Russian Grand Prix at Igora Drive will be an incredible event," he added. 

The Russian Grand Prix will move to the Autodrom Igora Drive near St Petersburg from 2023. New venue only 150km from Finland. Sochi will host F1 this year and next. #F1

— Lawrence Barretto (@lawrobarretto) June 26, 2021

There was a German Touring Car DTM race scheduled at the 15-turn anti-clockwise 4,086 km track though the event was cancelled because of the pandemic. 

Formula One states that more details about the race will be released in the coming months. For what it is worth, the Russian GP this year will be held on September 26, save for any COVID19 related restrictions that pop up in the 11th hour. It will be the penultimate race at the track.