What to expect in Russia: A strong showing from Sergio Perez, Red Bull challenging Ferrari

Team to watch: Force India

• With its long straights punctuated by short, slow corners, the Sochi track should suit Force India's Mercedes-powered VJM09.

• Teams will favour the softest available tyres this weekend which is ideal territory for Sergio Perez. He's a master at conjuring more life out of the soft rubber than his rivals can.

• Perez grabbed a podium for Force India when F1 last visited this circuit. The key to his success was a Safety Car appearance during which he made his sole pit stop and then ran non-stop until the end.

• Nico Hulkenberg has qualified inside the top ten for every race so far this season. He was a strong sixth on the grid at this track last year, but went out in a first-corner crash.

• All is not well for the team off-track, however. Co-owner Vijay Mallya may shortly face extradition back to India over unpaid debts.

Also on the radar: Red Bull

• Daniel Ricciardo caused a stir in Shanghai by putting his RB12 on the front row of the grid and leading the opening laps before his race was ruined by a puncture. But it served notice of Red Bull's much improved performance - he admitted afterwards the car has been quicker than expected at every track so far.

• Sochi has plenty of slow-to-medium speed corners for their car to get its teeth into. Red Bull has also gone very aggressive with its tyre selection - none of their rivals have taken more sets of the super-soft tyres. Expect them to go on the attack in the race. They could challenge Ferrari, who will not relish the cooler conditions expected at this year's much earlier Russian Grand Prix.

• Daniil Kvyat will be out to impress at his home grand prix having taken the second podium finish of his career in China. But he's lagged behind Ricciardo so far this season, especially in qualifying. With Red Bull looking to promote the highly-rated Max Verstappen from Toro Rosso, Kvyat must keep the results coming.

Nico Rosberg

• If Rosberg comes out on top again this weekend it will be only the fourth time in F1 history the same driver has won seven races in a row.

• But it's hard not to look at the results of the last three races and conclude that circumstances have been much kinder to Rosberg than team-mate Lewis Hamilton. Last year those roles were reversed: Rosberg was much quicker in Russia but was hit by misfortune in the race. If he's as quick again, Hamilton's wait for his first win of 2016 could go on.