In December 2013, Formula One President and CEO Bernie Ecclestone suggested that the race would be run in 2016 but later said that because the Korean Grand Prix organisers were in breach of contract, it would be moved to 2015.

[11] The circuit starts adjacent to Azadliq Square, then loops around Government House before heading west along a 1 km (0.62 mi) straight to the Palace of the Shirvanshahs and Maiden Tower.

Here, the track has a narrow 7.6 m (25 ft) uphill traversal and then circles the Old City before opening up onto a 2.2 km (1.4 mi) stretch along Neftchilar Avenue back to the start line.

[22] Many drivers praised the circuit for the challenge offered by its mixture of long straights, slow technical sections and no margin for error due to the proximity of the walls.

[23] In 2021, Rosberg criticised the location of the pit lane entrance adjacent to the 350 km/h (220 mph) main straight, calling it "one of the places I always found the most dangerous of the whole year".