Why is Azerbaijan Grand Prix taking place on a Saturday?

This year's Azerbaijan Grand Prix will take place on Saturday afternoon, a day earlier than Formula One's traditional Sunday slot.This is due to avoiding a clash with Azerbaijan's national Remembrance Day, taking place on Sunday, 27 September.It means that the whole weekend schedule has been moved forward by a day. The race will take place on Saturday at 12:00 (BST), with qualifying starting at 13:00 BST on Friday.The race is taking place at Baku City Circuit in the country's capital.Three practice sessions are scheduled across Thursday and Friday, with the first one starting at 09:30 BST on Thursday.Azerbaijan's Remembrance Day, first established by the Presidential decree in December 2020, remembers military soldiers whose lives were lost in the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War. A total of 2,783 Azerbaijan soldiers died in the conflict.Remembrance Day is held on 27 September, marking the day the war started.Since its inclusion as a regular Formula One race in November 2023, the Las Vegas Grand Prix is also regularly held on a Saturday night.Prior to the South African Grand Prix in 1985 - the last to be held on a Saturday until Las Vegas 2023 - races were often held on Saturdays, including the British Grand Prix.