Motorsport

MAX VERSTAPPEN is on home turf as the F1 Driver’s Championship drama continues at the Dutch GP.Lewis Hamilton remains just three points ahead in the standings going into a crucial qualifying session today, where the racers will compete for pole.
But Kimi Raikkonen will not be appearing this weekend after testing positive for Covid-19.

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VERSTAPPEN GETS POLE – BUT ONLY JUST
Hamilton is just 0.038 seconds behind the Red Bull man. Super close but Verstappen is on pole.
Hamilton will start second. Bottas in third. Gasly in fourth.
It is going to be an exciting start and some 72 laps tomorrow!

FINAL RUNS FOR GRID PLACES
Can anyone beat Max?

VERSTAPPEN TAKES PROVISIONAL POLE -THEN GOES EVEN QUICKER
He is into the 1:08s as he sets the benchmark. Two belting laps from the Red Bull man while Hamilton’s best crack is only good enough for third.
Six minutes still to run in this session and it is Verstappen, Bottas, Hamilton.

Q3 IS GO – AFTER A SHORT DELAY THE TOP 10 SHOOT OUT IS UNDERWAY
Verstappen vrs Hamilton. This could be a tasty one. All been advantage Verstappen.
However, he is on his own in this session, as his teammate Sergio Perez is out. Hamilton, however, can rely on Bottas to give him some help.
THIS TRACK IS CERATINLY PROVING TRICKY
Plenty of red flags over the two days so far. And still time for more drama. Q3 set to start in five minutes.

SESSION ENDED – LATIFI’S CRASH BRINGS AN EARLY END TO THE SESSION THAT WILL NOT BE RESTARTED
It means that Tsunoda, Latifi, Norris, Stroll and Russell are all eliminated.

RED FLAG – LATIFI CRASHES OUT
This time is it Russell’s teammate, Nicholas Latifi who crashes. That’s a hefty slam into the barrier at Turn 8. He is OK, but winded.

GREEN LIGHT – FINAL FEW MINUTES
This is going to be a hectic end to Q2.
3 MINUTES AND 54 SECONDS REMAINING
It means that Williams can quickly patch up Russell’s car and get him out for another crack of reaching the top 10.
RED FLAG – GEORGE RUSSELL HAS A SPIN AND IS IN THE BARRIER
He’s OK, has the car going again and is heading back to the pitlane. He pushed it too hard on the final corner and lost control.
That’s a shame as he was going along nicely on that lap.

VERSTAPPEN TOPS P2
Hamilton and Bottas cannot better his time as it stands. Giovinazzi in P4, Russell in fifth.

MAZEPIN COULD BE IN HOT WATER
Not that it will help out Vettel, who is out in Q1.

LANDO NORRIS SCRAPES IN BUT PEREZ IS OUT
That is a blow to Red Bull as Perez is eliminated at the first hurdle. He is down in 16th place.
That is simply not good enough from the Mexican or indeed Red Bull.
Vettel is also out after nearly getting taken out but the Haas of Nikita Mazepin.
Stewards will be looking at that incident after the session. However, it means that Norris is into Q2 – but only just.

RUSSELL IS ON A FLYER
He goes fifth quickest in a Williams. Following on from his excellent result at Spa, the Brit delivers another performance that underlines just why he’s being picked to replace Valtteri Bottas at Mercedes next season.
SAINZ IS OUT
The Ferrari man is out on track. That is a cracking re-build by his Ferrari team. He is out on track with a little under seven minutes remaining of Q1.
THERE IS A BIG ROAR FROM THE GRANDSTANDS AS VERSTAPPEN GOES P1
The Red Bull man is the quickest again around his home track and looks safely into Q2.
Hamilton is right behind him, just 0.147 seconds off his lap time.

GREEN LIGHT – QUALIFYING IS GO
Q1 is underway in Zandvoort. I expect this session to be fairly stop start, so an early lap could be key.

PLENTY AT STAKE
It is all to play for in the championship but it is not just about the individual drivers.
The team standings are also tightly packed and Mercedes hold a narrow lead over Red Bull heading into the Dutch GP.

RACE AGAINST TIME FOR SAINZ
Ferrari are still repairing his car following his accident in FP3. He is ready, should it be fixed in time.

HAMILTON LOVING TRACK
Lewis Hamilton appears to be a big fan of this weekend’s Dutch circuit and will be looking for a big performance this afternoon.
Wow what a circuit and what a crowd! Had to stop due to a loss of power. We will work through this and hope for a better day tomorrow. Thank you #teamlh for all the incredible support and also to the Dutch Orange fans for making the atmosphere electric today and for welcoming me. pic.twitter.com/ZdzgOmDIUJ— Lewis Hamilton (@LewisHamilton) September 3, 2021

VERSTAPPEN FOCUSED
Max Verstappen topped final practice and appears to have his eye on the prize as he chases pole position at the Dutch GP.

MAX TOPS THE LOT – VERSTAPPEN LEADS FINAL PRACTICE
Home advantage? It doesn’t matter. The Red Bull man heads into qualifying top of the pile.
Over half a second quicker than Valtteri Bottas and almost 0.8 seconds on Lewis Hamilton.
That’s huge. He’s also been cleared of any penalty for the confusion over the red light overtake on Lance Stroll from FP2.

SCHUMACHER SKIRTS ACROSS THE GRAVEL
He goes in too fast into the corner, loses control and runs across the gravel. He manages to keep moving but that will be a blow to his confidence.
WOW VERSTAPPEN HAS JUST GONE TOP OF THE TIME SHEETS
But what is even more impressive is that he set a time of 1:09.623 a full 0.556 seconds quicker than Bottas and 0.794 faster than Hamilton.
He says over the radio: “That last sector won’t get any better than that!”
He’s not wrong. That was a sensational lap.

FERNANDO ALONSO ROLLING BACK THE YEARS
The two-time world champion is in P1 in final practice.

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F1 action is back this weekend as Max Verstappen hopes to pick up a vital race win in his homecoming Dutch Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton remains just three points ahead of his rival and Sunday’s race should prove to be one of the most pivotal of the season yet.

Practice start time: 10.30am BST
TV/Live stream: Sky Sports F1

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F1 DAZZLES AGAIN
F1 received the perfect boost after the Belgian Grand Prix farce with a dazzling opening day of the Dutch Grand Prix, writes BEN HUNT.
After the dreary washout at Spa, with the processional three laps behind the safety car in a crude box-ticking exercise, these were the just scenes the sport needed again.
Over 70,000 orange-clad spectators were illuminated under the sunshine of Zandvoort, as the Dutch Grand Prix was welcomed back to the F1 calendar for the first time since 1985.
F1’s owners Liberty Media have worked hard to secure new races in exotic destinations such as Miami and Saudi Arabia while their ill-fated Vietnam GP, scheduled for last year but cancelled due to the pandemic, looks permanently destined for the dustbin.
It makes the return of this race their first long-term commitment in the post Bernie Ecclestone era – ironic given it was him who axed the Dutch GP, saying in 1985 F1 could “not keep pouring money into the circuit”.
Instead it was the Orange Army who were pouring into the circuit yesterday (FRI) as the weekend got underway.
Platform One of Amsterdam Centraal station was already heaving at 9am, as the Sprinter trains ferried fans to the coastline resort of Zandvoort, with services departing every 10 minutes for the half an hour journey.
On arriving in Zandvoort Am See, the pop-up bars were already selling beers while enterprising children ran stalls selling sweets and soft drinks.
The houses in this small seaside town on the outskirts of Amsterdam were decorated with chequered flags and the streets were full with fans dressed in orange, keen to cheer on their countryman Max Verstappen.
TROUBLE DUTCH PREDICTED FOR BIG GUNS
Sweden’s ex-F1 star Marcus Ericsson is predicting more surprises at the Dutch GP after Ferrari’s one-two in second practice.
Not only did Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz nick the first two spots, they were followed in third by Alpine’s Esteban Ocon.
And Ericsson posted: “The drivers can make a big difference on a track like this.”

MAX’S HAT TRICK
Max Verstappen revved up for his home Dutch GP by unveiling a new helmet.
The Red Bull ace is three points behind F1 Championship leader Lewis Hamilton ahead of Sunday’s race.

FP2: LECLERC GOES FASTEST
Leclerc clocks in a time of 1:10.902, the fastest out of both practice sessions so far.
He’s knocked Ocon off top spot with not long to go.
FP2: VERSTAPPEN GAINING
Dutch driver Verstappen is driving fast in front of his home crowd.
But he falls 0.190s short of Ocon’s quickest time so far with just over ten minutes left in the session.
FP2 – RED FLAG
Another red flag in practice, this time it’s Mazepin whose in the gravel at turn 11.
Ocon has driven the quickest so far.
FP2: HAMILTON DONE FOR THE DAY
Hamilton’s day is OVER!
The Brit has a broken engine it seems and he’s been taken back into the pits.
Bottas and Verstappen are battling it out it seems.
BIG FAN
Former F1 driver Marcus Ericsson is a big fan of the new track at Zandvoort.
He’s branded it ‘old school’.
On Twitter, he said: “Zandvoort looks awesome.
“What a cool track. Proper old school. Flowing corners, high speed, unique kerbs and no asphalt run offs = no margins for errors.
“All the Dutch fans filling the grandstands makes it even better!”
FP2: RED FLAG
Well that lasted long.
This time it’s Hamilton who is ordered to stop after saying he is ‘losing power’.
A huge cheer from the crowd goes up as the Brit comes to a grinding halt.
Better to happen now rather than in qualifying or the race itself.

FP2: HERE WE GO
Right, here we go!
FP2 is underway at Zandvoort, who will go fastest this time? Surely Verstappen will want to take top spot?
Hamilton went fastest in FP1, beating the Dutch title challenge by +0.097.
And hopefully nobody spins out or has engine faults, taking up precious practice time..
No red flags, please!
FP2: HALF AN HOUR TO GO
We’re half an hour away from FP2.
Here’s a reminder of who went fastest in FP1:

Hamilton – 1:11.500
Verstappen – +0.097
Sainz – +0.101
Leclerc – +0.123
Bottas – +0.238
Alonso – +0.658
Ocon – +0.731
Giovinazzi – +0.859
Stroll – +0.931
Gasly – +1.015

FP2: ONE HOUR TO GO
FP2 is just under an hour away so stick around for all the latest updates.
Let’s hope there’s not a massive delay like in FP1 and we get a full hour of action!
CLOSE CALL
Norris: “What’s this guy doing? He’s just pushed me off the track!”

STEEP
This photo on board the Mercedes gives you a rough idea how steep the banking is on some of the corners at Zandvoort.

FP1: FULL DETAILS
Tsunoda didn’t manage to clock in any lap time putting him rock bottom
Vettel – whose in 19th – managed to clock in a time, but it’s over four seconds short of the time leader Hamilton set.

FP1: HAMILTON FINISHES TOP
Hamilton finishes top of FP1, followed by Dutch driver and title rival Verstappen.
And Sainz takes third spot…… your top ten are as followed:

Hamilton – 1:11.500
Verstappen – +0.097
Sainz – +0.101
Leclerc – +0.123
Bottas – +0.238
Alonso – +0.658
Ocon – +0.731
Giovinazzi – +0.859
Stroll – +0.931
Gasly – +1.015

Credit: GETTY IMAGES
FP1: HAMILTON TOP
Hamilton is quickest in FP1, edging out team-mate Bottas with a time of 1:11.500.
Verstappen just can’t seem to beat Hamilton’s time and he’s clocked in a time 0.097s behind the Brit. 
FP1: THE CLOCK IS TICKING
The clock is ticking down and there’s just 13 minutes left of FP1, thanks to the delay.
Vettel’s car is being moved by the recovery car so hopefully we can squeeze some more action in with the very little time left.

FP1: HIGH VIZ
It looks as if Vettel has an electrical issue with his car, but the lengthy delay continues.
A man in a high viz, with a voltmeter and a rubber mat is attending to the car.
All drivers are back in the pits whilst the issue gets sorted, but not the best way to start the weekend!
Stay tuned.
FP1: VETTEL IN PITS
Seb Vettel is back in the pits after stopping at the pit exit, leading to a red flag.
But his car, however, is still where he left it ten minutes-plus from when he initially stopped.
Frustrating as it’s holding practice up.
FP1: RED FLAG
Vettel’s engine issues continue as he has engine failure and has pulled over on the pit exit.
Fireman Seb grabs a fire extinguisher and decides to try and put the problem out himself.
Red flag.
Credit: TWITTER: F1
FP1: VERSTAPPEN FASTEST
Verstappen is eager to impress on the track as he slashes his own fastest lap time and edges out Bottas by 0.171s.
The Dutch driver clocks in a time of 1:12.850 and is still top.
Hamilton is impressing too, but finds himself down in seventh place at the moment.
FP1: VETTEL EARLY PIT
Vettel appears to have an issue with his car and he’s back into the pits early doors.
Not the best start to the afternoon for the former F1 champion.
Verstappen has gone quickest with a 1:13.045 in front of his home fans at Zandvoort.
FP1: YELLOW FLAG
Three minutes into practice getting underway, AlphaTauri driver Yuki Tsunoda spins out.
The driver spun at low speed in the middle of the lap, and luckily didn’t fully go into the gravel.
He was, however, waiting a little while to get back onto the track. As you were!
FP1
Here we go!
FP1 is underway for the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort.
Max Verstappen will want to win in front of his home crowd on the revamped circuit.
Lewis Hamilton could receive a frosty welcoming, despite the warm weather.

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