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      Red Bull hit out at F1 bosses over three Max Verstappen penalties that have dealt blow to title fight with Hamilton

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      F1 race bosses are adamant they were right to punish Max Verstappen in the Portugal GP.The Dutchman was judged to have fallen foul of the rules with regards to going off track and gaining an advantage.
      Red Bull have hit out at Max Verstappen’s punishments – but race chiefs believe they are rightCredit: Splash
      Race chiefs issued a strict warning that lap times would be deleted to those drivers who exceeded track limits and drove over the white lines.
      Verstappen has now been punished THREE times, costing him a victory in Bahrain and a pole position and fastest lap bonus point in Portugal, with the race won by Lewis Hamilton.
      Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko said: “Now we’ve lost the victory, fastest lap, and pole position.
      “All good things come in threes. I hope that’s the end of it. Something has to change.
      “Either you make a boundary with kerbs or you make gravel or something. If you go out, there’s an automatic penalty.
      “[Lando] Norris overtook [Sergio] Perez, went over with all four wheels, and there were no consequences. So it’s not consistent, and that’s not racing when you juggle the rules like that.”
      Red Bull boss, Christian Horner also took issue with the track limits rule and accused the race stewards of inconsistency.
      He added: “The whole track limits debate is just frustrating. It’s been brutal for us across the first three events.
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      The ten greatest F1 drivers of all-time – according to SunSport’s motorsport correspondent Ben Hunt

      “The win in Bahrain, the pole position and now the fastest lap. So it’s been pretty expensive for us.
      “Norris passed Perez fully off the track. Again, another track limits inconsistency. We didn’t see anyone else have the penalty that Max did. He would’ve achieved that (fastest) lap.”
      However, Michael Masi, the FIA’s Race Director, hit back at the accusations of double standards.
      He said: “Having looked at it post-race, it’s very clear that Max was off the track (and) that he was faster in that mini-sector than anyone and as a result got the fastest lap of the race, which is a world championship point.
      “There were a number of lap times that were deleted during the race. Also, there were a few that were deleted during qualifying.
      “So I think that shows that we were policing the track limits for everyone equally.”
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      Ruthless Hamilton shows Verstappen size of task to dethrone Mercedes star of F1 crown as Horner makes title prediction

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      MAX VERSTAPPEN is beginning to realise the size of the task in front of him if he is to beat Lewis Hamilton to the F1 title.Red Bull have built him a car capable of challenging for victories; it is now down to him to get them by cutting out the mistakes.
      Max Verstappen will be starting to appreciate the size of the task in dethroning Lewis HamiltonCredit: Getty
      Hamilton took advantage of Verstappen’s minor mistakes to win the Portugal F1Credit: Rex
      The Dutchman left Portimao cursing his luck after three – albeit minor – mistakes over the weekend allowed ruthless Formula One champion Hamilton to take full advantage.
      The Brit’s victory in Portugal was far from routine as he battled back from third place and seized upon errors from Verstappen and his own team-mate, Valtteri Bottas.
      In fact, all three drivers made mistakes, it was just that Hamilton had the skills to recover after initially cursing his luck when Verstappen had first caught him off-guard.
      It happened after the Safety Car was called in following Kimi Raikkonen’s accident, as Hamilton took his eye off the ball.
      Hamilton said: “I was focusing on Valtteri and literally just for a split-second I looked in my mirror just to see where Max was.
      “In that split second, that’s when Valtteri went, so I lost out to Valtteri and so that wasn’t great.
      “Then, I was in Valtteri’s tow, and Max about to pull out. I was like ‘you idiot’ to myself.
      “Then after that, obviously being behind the two I just had to gather my thoughts and make a couple of tweaks in terms of how I was driving and then start on the attack again.”
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      Christian Horner is confident Verstappen can challenge Hamilton for the entire seasonCredit: Getty

      Hamilton took his opportunity on lap 11 when the Red Bull man had a wobble at Turn 14 before sizing up a move on Bottas.
      Just nine laps later he completed it, sweeping past the Finn who had turned into Turn One too tight – a big mistake that allowed Hamilton to take the racing line and swoop past.
      And the 36-year-old never looked back as he powered his way to the 97th victory of his career.
      Hamilton added: “Max had a small mistake which then put me in a nice position.
      “And then with Valtteri, I managed to just get him at Turn One. Just right on the limit.”
      For Verstappen, he now trails Hamilton by eight points in the championship after the opening three races.
      But while Hamilton has pounded out the results like a machine, Verstappen has made costly errors.
      In the opening race in Bahrain, he overtook Hamilton on the penultimate lap only to be told by the race stewards to surrender the position for exceeding track limits.

      The same infringement cost him pole in Portimao as his lap time was deleted meaning he started in third place.
      And there was the added embarrassment of being told on TV he would not earn the bonus point for setting the fastest lap in the race as that too was scrubbed off for going wide of the track.
      He put a brave face on it and is now ready to take the fight to Hamilton again in Barcelona this weekend – but he has to cut out the errors.
      He said: “It was a good fight with Lewis and from there it was super close with the three of us. I tried to attack Valtteri but I could just not get close enough.
      “By pushing I had a little wobble and Lewis was already close and got me into Turn One. I tried to put the pressure on but it was good. It felt more like racing.
      “This is what everyone wants to see and what I want [to be challenging for titles] because the last few years, we have not been close.
      “So it is a good start to the season, that is for sure, and it keeps everyone excited.”
      Red Bull boss Christian Horner hailed Verstappen’s second-place while also pointing out that Hamilton is fallible, illustrated by his crash in Imola.
      Lewis Hamilton is F1’s biggest earner
      Verstappen is now enjoying his best-ever start to an F1 season and Horner believes the championship will go down to the wire.
      He said: “We’ve managed to split the Mercedes. You can see it’s very, very marginal.
      “It was frustrating not to get that point at the end [for fastest lap] but we’ll definitely take that result.
      “Track limits are a bone of contention and the consistency of their application. This championship will come down to all the marginals.”
      Meanwhile, Bottas was again unable to convert his pole and has the unwelcome statistic of taking just one win in his last 19 races.
      In fact, the Finn, who is under pressure to keep his seat at Mercedes, has the same amount of F1 victories as Nico Rosberg since 2016; the same season the German retired from the sport.
      Bottas is down in fourth place in the drivers’ championship behind McLaren’s Lando Norris, who was fifth in the race behind Sergio Perez.
      Norris said: “My confidence is at an all-time high. It is going well and we are executing everything as best as we can.”
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      Meanwhile, Hamilton and Verstappen have promised to keep their title fight clean – for the time being.
      Hamilton said: “None of us here are under any illusion of just how hard it is out there for us, how close the battle is and how we are giving absolutely everything in our day-to-day lives in order to be best prepared and deliver at the weekends.
      “The pressure is immense between us all and I think there’s a huge amount of respect between us.
      “Of course, it’s always great when you have a race where you’re able to follow and overtake and capitalise on the small margins.
      “Max has been pulling absolutely everything out of the Red Bull and given us a great run for our money, so I think it’s going to be like this for the rest of the season, which I think can be incredibly exciting.
      “It is very, very hard but fair and I think that’s what makes great racing and I think we will continue to keep it clean and keep it on the edge, but I don’t think either of us has a plan to get any closer than we have been.”
      Verstappen added: “It’s been really cool, especially when you race a driver, when you know that you can go to the absolute limit.
      “I guess you can trust each other to just race super-hard. You can see in the three races we’ve had, Lewis has never had something like ‘oh, we’re going to crash’.
      “I always have full trust in Lewis that we all give each other enough space.”
      Lewis Hamilton’s post race reaction to winning the 2021 Portuguese Grand Prix More

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      Lewis Hamilton wins Portuguese GP ahead of Max Verstappen for 97th win of Brit’s career

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      MAX VERSTAPPEN is beginning to realise the size of the task in front of him if he is to beat Lewis Hamilton to the F1 title.Red Bull have built him a car capable of challenging for victories; it is now down to him to get them by cutting out the mistakes.
      Lewis Hamilton won Sunday’s Portuguese Grand PrixCredit: Getty
      Lewis Hamilton celebrates his victory in PortimaoCredit: Getty
      The Dutchman left Portimao cursing his luck after three – albeit minor – mistakes over the weekend allowed ruthless Hamilton take full advantage.
      The Brit’s victory in Portugal was far from routine as he battled back from third place, as he seized upon errors from Verstappen and his own teammate, Valtteri Bottas.
      In fact, all three drivers made mistakes, it was just that Hamilton had the skills to recover after initially cursing his luck when Verstappen had first caught him off-guard.
      It happened after the Safety Car was called in following Kimi Raikkonen’s accident, as Hamilton took his eye off the ball.
      Hamilton said: “I was focusing on Valtteri and literally just for a split-second I looked in my mirror just to see where Max was.
      “In that split second, that’s when Valtteri went, so I lost out to Valtteri and so that wasn’t great.
      “Then, I was in Valtteri’s tow, and Max about to pull out. I was like ‘you idiot’ to myself.
      “Then after that, obviously being behind the two I just had to gather my thoughts and make a couple of tweaks in terms of how I was driving and then start on the attack again.”
      Hamilton took his opportunity on lap 11 when the Red Bull man had a wobble at Turn 14 before sizing up a move on Bottas.
      Just nine laps later he completed it, sweeping past the Finn who had turned into Turn One too tight – a big mistake that allowed Hamilton to take the racing line and swoop past.
      And the 36-year-old never looked back as he powered his way to the 97th victory of his career.
      Hamilton added: “Max had a small mistake which then put me in a nice position.
      “And then with Valtteri, I managed to just get him at Turn One. Just right on the limit.”
      For Verstappen, he now trails Hamilton by eight points in the championship after the opening three races.
      But while Hamilton has pounded out the results like a machine, Verstappen has made costly errors.
      In the opening race in Bahrain, he overtook Hamilton on the penultimate lap only to be told by the race stewards to surrender the position for exceeding track limits.
      The same infringement cost him pole in Portimao as his lap time was deleted meaning he started in third place.
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      Lewis Hamilton didn’t have the best of starts to the race but quickly recovered to take pole positionCredit: AP
      Lewis Hamilton’s lead at the summit of the Driver’s Championship is now eight pointsCredit: Reuters

      And there was the added embarrassment of being told on TV he would not earn the bonus point for setting the fastest lap in the race as that too was scrubbed off for going wide of the track.
      He put a brave face on it and is now ready to take the fight to Hamilton again in Barcelona this weekend – but he has to cut out the errors.
      He said: “It was a good fight with Lewis and from there it was super close with the three of us. I tried to attack Valtteri but I could just not get close enough.
      “By pushing I had a little wobble and Lewis was already close and got me into Turn One. I tried to put the pressure on but it was good. It felt more like racing.
      “This is what everyone wants to see and what I want [to be challenging for titles] because the last few years, we have not been close.
      “So it is a good start to the season, that is for sure, and it keeps everyone excited.”
      Red Bull boss Christian Horner hailed Verstappen’s second-place while also pointing out that Hamilton is fallible, illustrated by his crash in Imola.
      Verstappen is now enjoying his best-ever start to an F1 season and Horner believes the championship will go down to the wire.
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      He said: “We’ve managed to split the Mercedes. You can see it’s very, very marginal.
      “It was frustrating not to get that point at the end [for fastest lap] but we’ll definitely take that result.
      “Track limits are a bone of contention and the consistency of their application. This championship will come down to all the marginals.”
      Meanwhile, Bottas was again unable to convert his pole and has the unwelcome statistic of taking just one win in his last 19 races.
      In fact, the Finn, who is under pressure to keep his seat at Mercedes, has the same amount of F1 victories as Nico Rosberg since 2016; the same season the German retired from the sport.
      Bottas is down in fourth place in the drivers’ championship behind McLaren’s Lando Norris, who was fifth in the race behind Sergio Perez.
      Norris said: “My confidence is at an all-time high. It is going well and we are executing everything as best as we can.”
      Today’s finals standings

      Hamilton (Mercedes)

      2. Verstappen (Red Bull, +29.148)
      3. Bottas (Mercedes, +33.530 and fastest lap)
      4. Perez (Red Bull, +39.735)
      5. Norris (McLaren, +51.369)
      6. Leclerc (Ferrari, +55.781)
      7. Ocon (Alpine, +63.749)
      8. Alonso (Alpine, +64.808)
      9. Ricciardo (McLaren, +75.3691
      10, Gasly (Alpha Tauri, +76.463)
      11. Sainz (Ferrari, +78.955)
      12. Giovinazzi (Alfa Romeo, one lap)
      13. Vettel (Aston Martin, one lap)
      14. Stroll (Aston Martin, one lap)
      15. Tsunoda (Alpha Tauri, one lap)
      16. Russell (Williams, one lap)
      17. Schumacher (Haas, one lap)
      18. Latifi (Williams, two laps)
      19. Mazepin (Haas, two laps)
      20. DNF – Raikkonen (Alfa Romeo)
      Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen react to epic Bahrain opener More

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      F1 Portuguese Grand Prix LIVE RESULTS: Hamilton LEADS with Verstappen in scrap with Bottas for second – updates

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      LEWIS HAMILTON has overtaken team-mate Valtteri Bottas after gaining two places after a safety car.
      UK start time: 3pm
      TV channel: Sky Sports F1
      Live stream: Sky Go (Sky Sports subscribers)/Now TV (non-subscribers)

      We’ll be bringing you all of the twists and turn from Portimao right here…
      LAP 58
      Fernando Alonso gets past his countryman Carlos Sainz and in to 8th place.
      It has not been a great start to his F1 return for the two-time world champion, but he is on for points here.
      LAP 56
      Perez sets the fastest lap. He is currently in P4 and will get a bonus point if he holds on to it.
      MAZEPIN GETS A PENALTY
      A five second time penalty added to his time for ignoring blue flags and failing to allow Perez to pass.
      LAP 51
      Hamilton is back into the lead as Perez is passed down the pitstraight.
      Hamilton, unsure asks his team if it was Verstappen, unaware that the Mexican was leading the race having yet to pit for tyres.
      MAZEPIN MAKING NO FRIENDS
      He blocks Perez. That’s the last-place car blocking the race leader. He could be feeling the wrath of the race stewards for that.
      Mazepin is so far back in this race, I think he is still in April.
      LAP 44
      A rare message over the radio from Toto Wolff to Bottas. The Mercedes boss gives his man a gee-up telling him he has the fastest car on track.
      Motivational? Or just adding pressure? Either way, this has not been good from Bottas
      PEREZ IS KEY HERE
      He might not be in the running for the win here, but he can hold up Hamilton and push him into Verstappen’s race.
      LAP 38
      Hamilton now stops for tyres. The stop is good and he resumes racing in second place, behind Perez, but the Mexican is yet to pit.
      That has certainly closed things up a bit and Bottas is out of the way now, allowing Verstappen to close up.
      LAP 37
      Bottas now stops for his tyres. The Mercedes man is held for a little longer. Verstappen stopped at 2.6 seconds. Bottas’s stop was 3.3 seconds.
      Bottas comes out of the pits in the lead. But Verstappen has hotter tyres. He gets past the Finn and into second.
      LAP 36
      Red Bull gamble and call in Verstappen for fresh tyres. He has to make them count to eat in to Bottas’s time.
      The pitstop from Red Bull is executed with perfection.
      LAP 35
      Hamilton now has a four second lead over Bottas, who has a 1.3 second advantage over Verstappen.
      After the early drama, this race has slowly become a procession.
      LAP 31
      Approaching the halfway stage of this race and it is Hamilton, Bottas, Verstappen, Perez, Ricciardo, Alonso, Stroll.
      FLURRY OF PITSTOPS
      But the top three at yet to stop. They are all running on the more-durable medium tyres.
      EVERY YEAR HE THINKS IT IS GOING TO BE HIS YEAR…
      But Bottas just simply has no answer to his teammate. After taking pole the previous day, this was his change to stay ahead, build up a lead and get the job done.
      Hamilton, went down to third, got to second. And now capitalised on a mistake from Bottas to go into the lead.
      He is now opening up a lead at the front, just as Bottas should have done.
      LAP 20
      Hamilton gets Bottas. The Brit is into the lead as Bottas moved to the right into Turn One.
      Strange move from Bottas, as Hamilton is able to take the racing line and he has squeezed past his teammate.
      It was clean from Hamilton. Poor from Bottas.
      LAP 17
      Bottas stays in front with Hamilton just running behind him. It looks like the Brit is just staying within touching distance, while Verstappen is a further second behind.
      It is the two Mercedes followed by the two Red Bulls, then Lando Norris and the two Ferraris.
      LAP 11
      Hamilton strikes back. A mistake from Verstappen at Turn 14 allowed the world champion to make up ground.
      He was able to convert that with a good overtake to regain second place. This is great stuff.

      LAP 10
      Verstappen closing the gap on Bottas as the Red Bull man has the benefit of DRS.
      Hamilton also within DRS range. This is getting tasty.
      VERSTAPPEN JUMPS HAMILTON
      The Dutchman builds up speed on the restart and gets past Hamilton into Turn One.
      That was great from Verstappen, who got the move done cleanly an caught Hamilton cold.
      It is Bottas, Verstappen, Hamilton, Norris, Perez, Sainz, Leclerc, Ocon, Gasly, Vettel.
      SAFETY CAR IS IN THIS LAP
      Racing is going to resume as the mess from Raikkonen’s smash has now been cleared up.
      POOR MISTAKE FROM RAIKKONEN
      TV replays show the experienced Finn simply drove into the rear of his teammate.
      What was he thinking? He was certainly not looking at the road ahead. Very poor from Raikkonen.
      SAFETY CAR – RAIKKONEN IS OUT
      Early drama as the Alfa Romeo man loses his front wing after tagging his teammate. He sends carbon-fibre and sparks everywhere as the front wing is lodged under his car.
      The race officials have deployed the Safety Car as they clean up the wreckage. Raikkonen is out of this race as he pulls on to a service road.
      GO, GO, GO! WE ARE OFF IN PORTUGAL
      Bottas holds the lead into Turn One, Hamilton stays second. Verstappen in third but Perez is struggling and passed by Sainz.
      Fantastic move from Norris around Ocon to regain sixth place.
      FORMATION LAP
      All systems go. And as the clock ticks to 3pm, the cars complete their formation laps.
      Load more entries… More

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      F1 Portuguese Grand Prix: Live stream, TV channel, start time and race schedule for Portimao GP

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      LEWIS HAMILTON has overtaken team-mate Valtteri Bottas after gaining two places after a safety car.
      UK start time: 3pm
      TV channel: Sky Sports F1
      Live stream: Sky Go (Sky Sports subscribers)/Now TV (non-subscribers)

      We’ll be bringing you all of the twists and turn from Portimao right here…
      LAP 58
      Fernando Alonso gets past his countryman Carlos Sainz and in to 8th place.
      It has not been a great start to his F1 return for the two-time world champion, but he is on for points here.
      LAP 56
      Perez sets the fastest lap. He is currently in P4 and will get a bonus point if he holds on to it.
      MAZEPIN GETS A PENALTY
      A five second time penalty added to his time for ignoring blue flags and failing to allow Perez to pass.
      LAP 51
      Hamilton is back into the lead as Perez is passed down the pitstraight.
      Hamilton, unsure asks his team if it was Verstappen, unaware that the Mexican was leading the race having yet to pit for tyres.
      MAZEPIN MAKING NO FRIENDS
      He blocks Perez. That’s the last-place car blocking the race leader. He could be feeling the wrath of the race stewards for that.
      Mazepin is so far back in this race, I think he is still in April.
      LAP 44
      A rare message over the radio from Toto Wolff to Bottas. The Mercedes boss gives his man a gee-up telling him he has the fastest car on track.
      Motivational? Or just adding pressure? Either way, this has not been good from Bottas
      PEREZ IS KEY HERE
      He might not be in the running for the win here, but he can hold up Hamilton and push him into Verstappen’s race.
      LAP 38
      Hamilton now stops for tyres. The stop is good and he resumes racing in second place, behind Perez, but the Mexican is yet to pit.
      That has certainly closed things up a bit and Bottas is out of the way now, allowing Verstappen to close up.
      LAP 37
      Bottas now stops for his tyres. The Mercedes man is held for a little longer. Verstappen stopped at 2.6 seconds. Bottas’s stop was 3.3 seconds.
      Bottas comes out of the pits in the lead. But Verstappen has hotter tyres. He gets past the Finn and into second.
      LAP 36
      Red Bull gamble and call in Verstappen for fresh tyres. He has to make them count to eat in to Bottas’s time.
      The pitstop from Red Bull is executed with perfection.
      LAP 35
      Hamilton now has a four second lead over Bottas, who has a 1.3 second advantage over Verstappen.
      After the early drama, this race has slowly become a procession.
      LAP 31
      Approaching the halfway stage of this race and it is Hamilton, Bottas, Verstappen, Perez, Ricciardo, Alonso, Stroll.
      FLURRY OF PITSTOPS
      But the top three at yet to stop. They are all running on the more-durable medium tyres.
      EVERY YEAR HE THINKS IT IS GOING TO BE HIS YEAR…
      But Bottas just simply has no answer to his teammate. After taking pole the previous day, this was his change to stay ahead, build up a lead and get the job done.
      Hamilton, went down to third, got to second. And now capitalised on a mistake from Bottas to go into the lead.
      He is now opening up a lead at the front, just as Bottas should have done.
      LAP 20
      Hamilton gets Bottas. The Brit is into the lead as Bottas moved to the right into Turn One.
      Strange move from Bottas, as Hamilton is able to take the racing line and he has squeezed past his teammate.
      It was clean from Hamilton. Poor from Bottas.
      LAP 17
      Bottas stays in front with Hamilton just running behind him. It looks like the Brit is just staying within touching distance, while Verstappen is a further second behind.
      It is the two Mercedes followed by the two Red Bulls, then Lando Norris and the two Ferraris.
      LAP 11
      Hamilton strikes back. A mistake from Verstappen at Turn 14 allowed the world champion to make up ground.
      He was able to convert that with a good overtake to regain second place. This is great stuff.

      LAP 10
      Verstappen closing the gap on Bottas as the Red Bull man has the benefit of DRS.
      Hamilton also within DRS range. This is getting tasty.
      VERSTAPPEN JUMPS HAMILTON
      The Dutchman builds up speed on the restart and gets past Hamilton into Turn One.
      That was great from Verstappen, who got the move done cleanly an caught Hamilton cold.
      It is Bottas, Verstappen, Hamilton, Norris, Perez, Sainz, Leclerc, Ocon, Gasly, Vettel.
      SAFETY CAR IS IN THIS LAP
      Racing is going to resume as the mess from Raikkonen’s smash has now been cleared up.
      POOR MISTAKE FROM RAIKKONEN
      TV replays show the experienced Finn simply drove into the rear of his teammate.
      What was he thinking? He was certainly not looking at the road ahead. Very poor from Raikkonen.
      SAFETY CAR – RAIKKONEN IS OUT
      Early drama as the Alfa Romeo man loses his front wing after tagging his teammate. He sends carbon-fibre and sparks everywhere as the front wing is lodged under his car.
      The race officials have deployed the Safety Car as they clean up the wreckage. Raikkonen is out of this race as he pulls on to a service road.
      GO, GO, GO! WE ARE OFF IN PORTUGAL
      Bottas holds the lead into Turn One, Hamilton stays second. Verstappen in third but Perez is struggling and passed by Sainz.
      Fantastic move from Norris around Ocon to regain sixth place.
      FORMATION LAP
      All systems go. And as the clock ticks to 3pm, the cars complete their formation laps.
      Load more entries… More

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      Lewis Hamilton vows to go ‘all in’ to stop Max Verstappen who launched X-rated rant after missing Portugal GP pole

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      LEWIS HAMILTON promised to get his elbows out in a first lap fight with Max Verstappen – who blasted the “f***ing d***heads” who denied him pole position.Red Bull man Verstappen was livid after seeing his pole lap deleted by the stewards for exceeding track limits during qualifying for Sunday’s Portugal GP.
      World champ Lewis Hamilton will bust a gut to get an early advantage over Max Verstappen and Valtteri BottasCredit: Getty
      Red Bull’s Max Verstappen is determined to overhaul Mercedes duo Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton, who start first and second on the grid respectivelyCredit: EPA
      Britain’s Lewis Hamilton is determined to extend his one point lead int the title race over Max VerstappenCredit: Getty
      He was then caught up in traffic as he tried in vain to beat Valtteri Bottas’ lap time for pole.
      Verstappen waved away the TV cameras after qualifying in third place but could not hide his frustration at being held up.
      Controversially, Lando Norris was told to “do him no favours” during qualifying while Verstappen also blasted the slow Aston Martin of Sebastian Vettel.
      Over the team’s radio, he said: “F*** sake, why do these guys not move. I am on a fast lap. They are f***ing d***heads!”
      He later added: “I did not enjoy one single lap.
      “It was not enjoyable to drive. If you look at the lap time [that was deleted] of course we could have had pole, but I don’t like to talk like that…should, would, could…
      “I thought I could do the lap again but then lost all my time with an Aston Martin in front of me.
      “I remember coming here to Portimao before the GP and it was in the top three of my favourite tracks and then they changed the tarmac. I don’t enjoy it any more.”
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      Meanwhile, Hamilton, who starts in P2, is bracing himself for an all-out attack from Verstappen, who was quickest out of the blocks last out in Imola.
      The Dutchman was bullish as he rammed his way past Hamilton and Bottas at the start of that race and went on to take the victory.
      But Hamilton says he will not be rolling over as he looks to increase his slender one-point advantage in the championship over Verstappen.
      Hamilton, who was just 0.007 seconds off Bottas’s time, said: “There was so much lost time out there and I was not able to put it together.
      “It was very tricky and this qualifying session has to be at the bottom of the list of all my qualifying sessions.
      “But I will go all in at the start of the race. It will be a close battle between the three of us.”
      This has put a smile on my face… we are going in the right direction… hard work always pays off.Valtteri Bottas on winning pole
      Bottas took the 17th pole of his career after a difficult start to the season where he has been upstaged by his Mercedes teammate.
      The Finn has seen his future at the team called into question and was also crashed into by George Russell, who has been mooted as his replacement.
      He added: “It is a good feeling to be on pole. It feels like it has been a while and qualifying has been a weak point for me in the first two races.
      “But this has put a smile on my face. I feel like we are going in the right direction. The only way I know is that hard work always pays off.
      “Let them talk about [the championship between Hamilton and Verstappen]. I don’t need to say anything.”
      Meanwhile, Russell again impressed in his Williams and will line up in 11th place on the grid after missing out on qualifying in the top 10 by 0.057seconds.

      He said: “It is part of the game and we got it together when it mattered.
      “The race pace looks stronger and we have the quickest car in a straight line.
      “We qualified 12th last week and were running in the points and now we have another chance to score some points.”
      Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton shows off ripped body More

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      F1 Portuguese Grand Prix qualifying LIVE RESULTS: Bottas qualifies fastest ahead of Hamilton and Verstappen

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      VALTTERI BOTTAS has decided he is fed up of the Portuguese Grand Prix being billed as Hamilton vs Verstappen – by claiming pole.The Mercedes ace finished 0.007sec ahead of Lewis Hamilton who will start on second in the Algarve.
      Max Verstappen was third, nearly 0.4sec down on the Mercedes cars ahead of Sunday’s race.
      We’ll be bringing you all of the twists and turn from Portimao right here…
      GOOD LAP FROM BOTTAS
      As the wind picked up, the pace dropped off by Bottas was able to find time to move clear of the rest of the field.
      BOTTAS TAKES POLE IN PORTUGAL
      After a difficult few weeks, the Finn takes P1 ahead of Hamilton. Verstappen starts in P3. Perez in P4. Sainz in fifth, Ocon will start sixth.
      VERSTAPPEN STRUGGLING – HE IS IN P3
      Now all focus on Hamilton vrs Bottas for pole
      JUST 0.007 SECONDS BETWEEN BOTTAS AND HAMILTON
      This is going to be close. Four minutes to go.
      BOTTAS TAKES PROVISIONAL POLE
      Hamilton in second. Verstappen has his lap time deleted for exceeding track limits at Turn Four.
      Q3 IS GO
      Hamilton v Bottas v Verstappen.
      Can Perez break in to that three-way shootout for pole?
      Leclerc and Sainz both looking to continue Ferrari’s resurgence.
      Vettel back in Q3 for the first time in 16 races.
      SHOOT OUT FOR POLE – HAMILTON GOING FOR NUMBER 100
      The Brit is eyeing up the landmark achievement. He was in a class of one in Q2.
      Have Red Bull got an answer to his pace? We will find out in little under 15 minutes.
      RUSSELL JUST MISSES OUT ON Q3
      The Brit will line up in 11th place on the grid after just missing out on getting into the top 10.
      That was so close but shows that both he, and his Williams team, are improving.
      BIG MARKER FROM HAMILTON
      The world champion is 0.4 seconds quicker than the rest of the field. Bottas currently in P2.
      Over to Verstappen…
      TRAFFIC FOR HAMILTON
      He’s out on track but finds himself behind a lot of cars. He’s out early again, taking no chances trying to get a banker in.
      He’s on medium tyres, which should still be enough to get him into Q3.
      BIG BLOW FOR RICCIARDO AND STROLL
      Daniel Ricciardo is out in Q1 along with Lance Stroll.
      A big disappointment for the Aussie in his McLaren while Stroll remember all the upgrades, not his teammate Vettel, who is in to Q2.
      George Russell IS in to Q2 while his teammate Latif is out along with the Haas duo.
      DROP ZONE FOR Q1
      Mazepin, Russell, Schumacher, Tsunoda , Latifi and Stroll are all in the bottom six.
      PEREZ SPINS OFF
      The Red Bull man is in the gravel after losing control. He’s managed to escape with no damage and his time should still be good enough to get in to Q2.
      HAMILTON HAS A LAP DELETED
      He was the quickest man on track but that has been expunged after the stewards deemed he had exceeded track limits at Turn One.
      That’s not good news for the world champion who is fighting it out there.
      DELETED LAPS
      Charles Leclerc has seen his lap time deleted for exceeding track limits. This is a big one. Remember it cost Norris a P3 last out in qualifying.
      Leaving the circuit also cost Verstappen a win in Bahrain, as the stewards told him to hand the place back to Hamilton, who won.
      Basically, the drivers have to keep it between the white lines. It is a simple enough rule, but not so easy to do.
      Q1 IS GO
      And there are lots of drivers on track already. Unusually busy, perhaps drivers concerned about the perils of yellow flags caused by spinning cars in Q1.
      Remember all 20 cars in this second, including the Haas duo.
      CONDITIONS ARE TRICKY IN PORTIMAO
      Yes, it’s sunny. But this track is up and down across many elevation changes and with wind speeds of 15kmh, drivers could be caught out by gusts.
      PROBLEMS IN PORTUGAL
      Issues for Bottas, Norris, Alonso…
      Plenty of work going on in the garages ahead of qualifying. Bottas has has his Mercedes gearbox off due to a sensor issue.
      Norris has had an electrical fault and still in the dark over the Alpine of Alonso.
      FEELING BULLISH
      Red Bull boss Christian Horner reckons it will be a tight scrap for pole position in today’s qualifying at the Portuguese Grand Prix.
      Horner told Sky Sports: “It’s going to be tight.
      “The wind makes it very tricky around here, particularly the back end of the lap.
      “We can see the corners where we are quite strong, we can see Mercedes particularly at Turn Three and Turn Five seem to have a bit of an edge on us, so it’s going to be about threading the needle and getting it right this afternoon.”
      MAX EFFORT
      Max Verstappen will be hoping he can land pole position in his Red Bull after being the speediest round the track in third practice.
      He is just one point behind Lewis Hamilton at the top of the overall standings going into Sunday’s Portuguese Grand Prix.
      Credit: AFP
      Credit: Getty
      ON THE LEW-K OUT
      Lewis Hamilton is chasing his 100th pole position in qualifying that starts in just under an hour.
      But will the seven-time world champ have enough to outpace rival Max Verstappen?

      PRACTICE OVER
      Here’s how it looked at the end of the third practice session out in Portugal with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen fastest.

      SNOOZE YOU LEW-S
      Lewis Hamilton in action at third practice at Portimao with the Mercedes just losing out to Max Verstappen’s Red Bull for the fastest in the session.
      Credit: Reuters
      SOLID FROM FERRARI AND SCHUMACHER
      The two Ferrari drivers are sixth and seventh, Norris in ninth in his McLaren.
      And that was also a great performance from Schumacher, who was quicker than both Aston Martins.
      THIS IS CLOSE: VERSTAPPEN LEADS HAMILTON
      In final practice, it is the Red Bull man who tops the session, but only just.
      Bottas in third and Perez in fourth. It is going to be Red Bull vrs Mercedes and its advantage to the team from Milton Keynes.
      Load more entries… More

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      F1 Portuguese Grand Prix qualifying: Start time UK, TV channel, live stream and race schedule for Portimao GP 2021

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      FORMULA ONE returns as what looks set to be the most competitive season in years moves on to the picturesque Portuguese Grand Prix.Lewis Hamilton leads the early rankings with one win and one podium, but Red Bull’s Max Verstappen is just a point behind.
      Hamilton returns to the scene of his win last yearCredit: EPA
      Last season it was Hamilton who took the chequered flag at Portimao, with teammate Valtteri Bottas in second.
      F1 Portuguese Grand Prix LIVE – Latest updates from Portimao
      What time does F1 Portuguese Grand Prix qualifying start?
      As ever, the race weekend takes place over three gruelling days.

      Portuguese Grand Prix qualifying is on Saturday, May 1 and begins at 3pm BST.
      Before that, practice three will be held at 12 noon.
      The big race itself will see lights out at the same time on Sunday, May 2.

      🏁 F1 2021 calendar: practice times, dates and racetrack info
      What TV channel is the F1 Portuguese Grand Prix on and can I live stream it?

      You can catch all of the action live on Sky Sports F1.
      Coverage of the practice sessions begins at 11am on Friday.
      If you’re not a Sky customer, grab a NOW TV pass from £9.99 to stream wherever you are.

      Full race schedule
      Friday, April 30

      Practice 1 – 11.30am to 12.30pm
      Practice 2 – 3pm to 4pm

      Saturday, May 1

      Practice 3 – 12pm to 1pm
      Qualifying – 3pm to 4pm

      Sunday, May 2

      Race – 3pm More