Liberty Media: PLEASE save the Azerbaijan GP!

The Azerbaijan Grand Prix once again delivered a mind-bendingly brilliant race at the weekend, but it could be the last time Formula 1 visits Baku. Reports suggest the event will be replaced by a street race in Miami, so Liberty Media, please heed our words!

Dear Messrs Carey and Bratches,

Congratulations on staging yet another incredible Azerbaijan Grand Prix at the Baku City Circuit. It really had it all: a great strategy battle, squabbling team-mates, overtakes galore, a surprise podium, crazy crashes - pretty much everything an F1 fans wants from a race.

It was the same last year too! Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton banging wheels was one of the enduring images of the 2017 campaign, as was Daniel Ricciardo's TRIPLE overtake.

This year, we've had the latest flare-up between the Red Bulls, Ricciardo and Max Verstappen - two of the most entertaining racers in F1.

It was fantastic to see them going wheel-to-wheel over and over and over again. Four times they had goes at each other, it was incredible!

It all ended in tears for Red Bull, but F1 is all about the lows as much as the highs - just ask Valtteri Bottas!

Bottas was robbed of a victory that he and Mercedes had worked so hard to snatch from Vettel, but the image of him slumped in the pit-lane stirred emotions in fans of all sports, never mind just motorsports.

None of these moments, images or memories would have been possible without the madness that Baku stirs among the teams.

Its narrow circuit, high walls and sizzling speeds are everything the fan wants from a race track, so it is deeply disturbing to see reports at the weekend suggesting that we will not return to Baku next season.

We have no doubt that a Miami street track has a place on the F1 calendar and the United States certainly deserves a second race after the excellent job done at COTA over the years.

Baku might not be the most traditionally glamorous location, it might not be the most financially worthwhile but it has proven itself to be one of the best tracks for pure racing madness on the calendar.

The 2021 vision is all about bringing the field closer together, well Baku already does that for you!

Last year, Lance Stroll's third-place finish was the only podium for anyone outside of the big three teams. Sergio Perez's this season could be a similar statistic by the end of the year.

Just like in 2017, eight of the 10 teams scored points. This is the kind of parity that you want to bring into the sport on the whole, so don't get rid of it when you have it.

It's great for the fans, brings the teams closer together and provides the sporting utopia that you are trying to build.

Liberty Media, please DO NOT drop the Azerbaijan Grand Prix from the calendar in 2018.

Yours sincerely,
GP Fans.