Max Verstappen fastest in 1st practice for Azerbaijan GP
June 04, 2021 15:42 ISTMercedes didn't challenge for the top positions, with Lewis Hamilton seventh and Valtteri Bottas 10th.
Mercedes didn't challenge for the top positions, with Lewis Hamilton seventh and Valtteri Bottas 10th.
Winning the last race in Monaco put Verstappen four points ahead of Hamilton heading into the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Verstappen's second win this season and 12th of his career moved the Red Bull driver four points ahead of Hamilton overall.
Leclerc damaged the gearbox when crashing 18 seconds from the end of Saturday's qualifying.
Leclerc held the top spot at his home track until his Ferrari grazed a barrier to break a suspension piece.
The Formula One championship contender led the Ferraris of Carlos Sainz Jr. and local favorite Charles Leclerc, with defending champion Lewis Hamilton only seventh fastest for Mercedes.
Hamilton will be aiming for his 101st career pole position on Saturday and his 99th win on Sunday.
Hamilton is aiming for a record eighth F1 title to move one ahead of Michael Schumacher, and he leads the championship by 14 points ahead of Verstappen, who is seeking his first.
Hamilton followed his 100th career pole on Saturday by taking his 98th career win. He also tied Michael Schumacher's mark of six victories at the Spanish Grand Prix.
Hamilton pushed his Mercedes to a flying lap of 1 minute, 16.74 seconds. Verstappen in his Red Bull was only 0.03 seconds behind.
Verstappen pushed his Red Bull to a session-best lap of 1 minute, 17.83 seconds.
On Saturday, Hamilton will be aiming for his 100th career pole. On Sunday, he will be looking to equal Michael Schumacher’s six wins in Montmeló.
Vettel has finished 15th, 15th and 13th in the first three races with Aston Martin in a move from Ferrari.
At a track all teams know well, Mercedes and Red Bull are expected to continue to dominate with Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen separated by eight points after three races.
Hamilton won the season-opener in Bahrain ahead of Verstappen before the Dutchman turned the tide in Italy, with pole-sitter Hamilton riding out in a rare mistake after which he still managed to rebound from ninth to second at the chequered flag.
The track has been a regular fixture on the F1 calendar since 1987 and the multi-year extension is part of an effort to grow the sport in Asia.
India registered over 3.14 lakh new cases on Thursday morning, pushing the overall caseload to nearly 1.60 crore, according to the data provided by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
The world champion had run wide through the gravel trap and nudged into the barriers on lap 31 of the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix on Sunday.
Max Verstappen won a dramatic Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix on Sunday after world champion Lewis Hamilton hit a wall in a race.
Next year’s race will be the first in a 10-year deal and is in addition to the existing grand prix at Circuit of The Americas in Austin, Texas.
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