Russian Grand Prix: With thanks to an unstoppable force and an immovable object

Around this time in 1983, when Bowie and Spandau Ballet were tussling at the top of the UK charts and Brits were getting used to the weight of a £1 coin in their pockets, Bernie Ecclestone had high hopes that modern F1 would be arriving in Russia.

It was not to be, at least not in the era of Kajagoogoo and Men at Work.

But Bernie’s not a man to give up easily and, in 2010, it emerged that Sochi was going to sneak in an F1 race, under the cover of the 2014 Winter Olympics.

Did I say sneaking? Vladimir Putin was a long-time backer of bringing F1 to Russia; and so F1’s unstoppable force was working in tandem with Russia’s immovable object, and the sport was duly delivered.

It’s a shame that such a powerful pairing wasn’t able to deliver a modern classic but the Hermann Tilke (of course) circuit is hugely important as a strategic outpost for those who run the business of F1.

So much for the business of Formula 1. Is there anything to watch out for this weekend in Sochi?

Time for a Lew break?

Which set of stats do you want to trust most?

The set which says Nico Rosberg has won every race this season, plus the final three last season? If he wins this weekend, Rosberg will have won seven GPs on the trot, equalling Ascari and Schumacher’s best winning streaks, and bested only by Vettel’s nine-win epic during the German’s Red Bull peak.

Or do you prefer some other statistics, the ones which show Lewis Hamilton as the only man to have won in Sochi, in 2014 and 2015?

In truth, the odds are weighted heavily in favour of Rosberg. He took pole last year, a full three-tenths ahead of Hamilton, until reliability issues struck.

In 2014 he was challenging Hamilton for the lead as well, but flat-spotted his tyres and had to pit after a single lap. Rosberg still finished second, though of course that Mercedes was the class of the field and Hamilton was managing the race from out front.

If Rosberg can get to the first corner ahead of Hamilton, it should be the German’s day.

Sticky stuff

In F1 terms, the Sochi Autodrome is a putting green. Tyres get a particularly easy time and drivers, thankfully, can push their rubber harder than at other circuits.

Well, if they’re not sweating fuel consumption, that is.

The Mercs have opted for eight supersofts this year. Ferrari have been more conservative with six, and those cheeky chappies at Red Bull may have played their joker with ten sets of the sticky rubber.

So there’s no strategic consistency at the pointy end of the grid, despite the relative predictability of Sochi. Hurrah.

Tyre rules have changed since last year and the race is being held in early May, rather than October, which all helps make things a bit less predictable.

Williams Chief Technical Officer Pat Symonds offered hope to race fans when he said: ‘In the past, harder tyres have been quite competitive, whereas the supersoft tyres we see in qualifying might be quite difficult to get good performance out of at the end of the lap from turns 13 to 18.

‘Last year it was an easy one-stop race but having the supersoft tyres in use this year – which some cars will start on depending on qualifying position – may mean that a one-stop strategy is not the best.’

Watch out for Sergio Perez. Force India may be struggling but Perez can magic as many laps from softer rubber as any rival, and this could be his weekend to shine a little.

Keep the Red flag flying

Red Bull head honcho Christian Horner has spent the early part of the 2016 season in a state of permanent amazement, as his team has outperformed expectations and kept Ferrari within striking distance.

Red Bull head honcho Christian Horner is, of course, pretty damned good at expectation management.

Nevertheless, the current Red Bull chariot is fast in tight corners, and Sochi has lots of low and medium-speed bends in which the Bullies can grab an advantage.

Red Bull’s aggressive tyre selection tells its own story here. The team hasn’t covered itself in glory in previous visits to Sochi but, as Daniel Ricciardo said: ‘We’ve had some strong races so far this year on circuits we didn’t think suited us either, so let’s see what happens.’

And don’t forget how hard Ferrari, especially super-smooth Raikkonen, find it to get heat in their tyres; a cool Russian Grand Prix could drop them properly into Red Bull’s sights.

Putt’ it there mate

Putin reportedly made sure there was some $50million a year to get F1 into Russia and he will want his moment in the world’s sports media spotlight.

And Ecclestone? He’s always banging on about how Putin should rule the world, because it guarantees him headlines.

Heck, he might even believe that. Anyway, the chances are that Comrade Bernie will yet again be pictured sitting beside his best Russian friend.

As for Putin, well, he has a summer house near Sochi. You can take it as read that he sees the Sochi resort as among the world’s most glamorous, and he’d like the rest of the world to view it that way too.

And that is how the worlds of politics and sport can collide. Here’s hoping Bernie says something vaguely sound-bitey.

Anyone fancy lunch?

It’s race No.4 of the marathon 2016 season and, for some of us, it will be significant because we don’t have to wake up with the cockerel to watch it live.

Where TV audiences are concerned, timing is everything and more people will watch this race live simply because, in Europe at least, they don’t have to sacrifice their Sunday lie-in.

Is this significant? Hell, yes. Everything is better after a decent sleep. If you can find a pub with an F1 feed, then you have F1 nirvana. Even if it is just the Russian race.