Motorsport

LEWIS HAMILTON has qualified first in Istanbul with a new track record.However he will start the race in eleventh after taken a new combustion engine, exceeding his allocation of engine changes.
Perhaps more significantly for the Brit, team-mate Valtteri Bottas has qualified in second place, meaning he will start on pole.
Max Verstappen qualified third so will start second, and Hamilton will be hoping Bottas can the Dutchman up while he makes his way through the field.
Follow all the action with our live blog below…
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HAM HUNT
Lewis Hamilton has warned Max Verstappen he’s gunning for victory in tomorrow’s Turkish GP – despite his 10-place grid penalty.
He said: “It really depends on what the weather we’ve got and yes, partly cautious, but also super attacking; I need to win the race somehow. So that’s my goal.
“I was already third at the end of Turn One last year, so that made a bit of a difference, but it’s a different weekend.
“My eyes are still solely set on winning the race; it’s going to be very hard from 11th, but not impossible.
“So… just making sure we’ll deliver maximum attack. It is not going to be easy to fight through, but whether there is a wheel there is a way.
“We will try and make sure it is balanced and try to minimise the damage and get as high as possible.”
RACE REPORT
We’ve seen the official qualifying classifications, now read the SunSport report for the verdict from Istanbul Park…
Lewis Hamilton was fastest in Turkey but faces a grid penaltyCredit: AFP
TIME KEEPING
Here is the official qualifying classification from Istanbul Park.
As SunSport has reported, Hamilton was quickest in his Mercedes but a 10-place grid penalty will see him start tomorrow’s race from 11th.
That means pole position goes to his team-mate Valtteri Bottas, with Hamilton’s championship rival Max Verstappen promoted to the front row from third.

HAMILTON IS QUICKEST IN QUALIFYING
A mega job from Hamilton, who has that engine penalty and will have a 10-place penalty.
Bottas is in P2 but will be promoted to pole for the race. Verstappen is third quickest and elevated to second on the gird.

VERSTAPPEN IS ONLY QUICK ENOUGH FOR THIRD
Bottas is second.
HAMILTON GOES QUICKEST
A new track record to eclipse Bottas’ time. 1:22.868 is the time. What has Verstappen got in reply?
90 seconds to go. It is Hamilton, Bottas, Verstappen, Gasly, Perez, Alonso, Norris, Leclerc, Tsunoda and Stroll.
GASLY IN FOURTH
With respect to AlphaTauri, it is incredible he has been overlooked for a seat in one of the bigger teams.

GOOD START FOR BOTTAS
The Finn takes provisional pole. Hamilton is second-quickest and Verstappen in third based on their first runs.

Q3 IS GO – BACK ON THE QUICKER, SOFT TYRES
Hamilton v Verstappen. It has been all Hamilton so far this weekend.
ELIMINATED FROM Q2
Sainz, Schumacher, Russell, Vettel and Ocon.
Meanwhile, at the top Hamilton dominates. Verstappen second-quickest.

RUSSELL GOES WIDE AT THE LAST CORNER
Shame for the Williams man, who was flying. But a mistake at the final turn sees him knocked out.
ONE MINUTE TO GO
Sainz, Schumacher, Vettel, Russell and Leclerc are all in the drop zone.
But Lance Stroll has gone off track. He is in danger of getting bumped out.
SPIN FOR LECLERC
He loses it at the end of his lap and spins off. He’s heading back to the garage for new tyres.
STRONG OPENING LAPS FROM HAMILTON
He is looking awesome on these medium tyres. He’s 0.407 seconds clear of Verstappen, who is in P2.
Q2 IS GO – RED BULL AND MERCEDES STRAIGHT OUT
That rain is looming. Both cars on medium tyres, looking to start the race on those sets.
As expected, medium tyres seem to be the order of the day for #Q2. The medium tyre is a bit harder to warm up, but will ensure a longer first stint with the possibility of doing a one-stopper. pic.twitter.com/xrwncJGNHe— Pirelli Motorsport (@pirellisport) October 9, 2021

Q1 RESULTS
Close at the top.

WHAT A RESULT FOR SCHUMACHER
In tricky conditions – and in a under-strength car – he is into Q2. He’s over the moon.
He’s quicker than Vettel. And THREE SECONDS quicker than his teammate, Mazepin.

VERSTAPPEN RECOVERS HE IS SAFE
The Dutchman is in second quickest, behind Hamilton. But Daniel Ricciardo is OUT in Q1.
That’s a huge blow to the Aussie, who simply ran out of time. He is eliminated at the first hurdle.
VERSTAPPEN HAS HIS LAP TIME DELETED
He drops to 10th place. Nervous times for Red Bull?
TWO MINUTES TO GO – VETTEL IN THE DROP ZONE
The four-time world champion has some work to do if he is to get into Q2.
SAINZ SPINS
Ferrari man is due to start last due to engine penalties, but is still struggling out there.

ITS IS RAINING
Hamilton goes quickest, he does get his lap in.
As expected, a few spots of rain have started falling at Intercity Istanbul Park… ☔️All eyes glued to this action!#TurkishGP 🇹🇷— McLaren (@McLarenF1) October 9, 2021

VERSTAPPEN SPINS TOO
He says he “tried to take it careful but never got the grip”. With the rain looming, could we see a big scalp in Q1?
THIS COULD BE A CHAOTIC
Drivers all bunching up to try and get a lap in. Lewis Hamilton jumps the queue and makes a mistake.
He goes off track and he’s spoiled that lap already.
Carlos Sainz also spins and complains of cold tyres.

GREEN LIGHT – QUALIFYING FOR THE TIRKISH GP IS GO
And with rain expected, it is already a very busy pitlane. Drivers will be looking to get their laps in early – before the downpours!
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F1 returns this weekend and there has already been a big twist.Lewis Hamilton has taken a new combustion engine, exceeding his allocation of engine changes.
And that means a ten-place grid penalty for Sunday’s race in Istanbul.
Follow all the action with our live blog below…
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THINKING OUTSIDE OF THE GLOVE BOX
SunSport’s Ben Hunt writes: Email has just landed in my inbox telling me that Hamilton, Vettel, Sainz, Ricciardo and Russell are all trialling a prototype glove.
The new gloves have improved heat transmission protection. It comes after Romain Grosjean suffered bad burns to his hands following his fiery smash in Bahrain last year.
Credit to the FIA for pushing though the new safety improvements.
MERCEDES FINE WITH LEWIS PENALTY
Mercedes trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin says that Lewis Hamilton’s 10-place penalty for an engine change – rather than a completely new powertrain – is a calculated risk.
He said: “We’re simulating all the races until the end of the year and obviously the thing you definitely don’t want to do is fail during a race and then have to take a penalty anyway.
T”hen there’s also a performance element, because the power units do lose a bit of horsepower over their life.
“The bit that most contributes to the reliability and the performance is the ICE itself – and it’s better to take 10 places than start at the back.”
MAX: WE MUST DO BETTER
Max Verstappen was content with his practice performance in ‘challenging’ conditions – but demanded improvement.
He was 0.635secs off the pace after oversteer in the second session – after suffering understeer earlier on.
Red Bull’s world title hopeful said: “Great track, but today was challenging. It looks like we have some work to do overnight to improve our performance.”
RISK WORTH TAKING
Mercedes trackside engineering director, Andrew Shovlin, says that Lewis Hamilton’s 10-place penalty for an engine change – rather than a completely new powertrain – is a calculated risk.
He said: “We’re simulating all the races until the end of the year and obviously the thing you definitely don’t want to do is fail during a race and then have to take a penalty anyway.
T”hen there’s also a performance element, because the power units do lose a bit of horsepower over their life.
“The bit that most contributes to the reliability and the performance is the ICE itself – and it’s better to take 10 places than start at the back.”
LEW: I NEED POLE
Lewis Hamilton is hoping for a Turkish delight – despite being forced to take a 10-place penalty on Sunday.
As SunSport reported earlier this week, the world champion risked being bumped to the back of the grid for taking a new powerunit in the back of his Mercedes.
F1 rules allow drivers to use three engines, plus their components, during the course of a season. Any additional parts will incur grid penalties for the grands prix.
However, Merc have only replaced the internal combustion engine (ICE) in his motor – keeping his penalties to a minimum so he can still fight Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
Hamilton is now eyeing up clinching pole in qualifying on Saturday to start just outside of the top-10 before embarking on a major fightback through the field.
He said: “I have a lot of work to do on Sunday. The other drivers are going to be hard to pass. They seem to be improving more and more throughout the year.
“I need to be on pole to limit the loss and then understand the car to do the best I can and find the right balance.”
MERCEDES ADMIT GRID PENALTY IS RISKY 
Mercedes trackside engineering director, Andrew Shovlin claims Lewis Hamilton’s 10-place penalty for an engine change – rather than a completely new powertrain – is a calculated risk.
Shovlin said: “We’re simulating all the races until the end of the year and obviously the thing you definitely don’t want to do is fail during a race and then have to take a penalty anyway.
“Then there’s also a performance element, because the power units do lose a bit of horsepower over their life.
“The bit that most contributes to the reliability and the performance is the ICE itself – and it’s better to take 10 places than start at the back.”
LEWIS: TOUGH TEST TO PASS
LEWIS HAMILTON says he has “a lot of work to do on Sunday” after clocking the fastest practice time but taking a 10-place grid penalty.
Mercedes’ world champion said: “The other drivers are going to be hard to pass. 
“They seem to be improving more and more throughout the year.
“I need to be on pole to limit the loss and then understand the car to do the best I can and find the right balance.”
NINTCHDBPICT000685342791Credit: Rex
RED BULL ADMIT ‘BALANCE MISH-MASH’
Red Bull boss Christian Horner admits his team have their work cut out if they are to help Max Verstappen return top of the championship with victory in the Turkish GP.
He said: “We’ve got a little bit of a balance mish-mash at the moment. The circuit is a lot grippier than it was last year and we’re just a little bit out of the window with Max on set-up.
“It’s going to be a busy night tonight, burning the midnight oil with the engineers and no doubt back in the factory at Milton Keynes.
“We know we’ve got a good car so it’s just a matter of getting into that window.”
THINKING OUTSIDE OF THE GLOVE BOX
SunSport’s Ben Hunt writes: Email has just landed in my inbox telling me that Hamilton, Vettel, Sainz, Ricciardo and Russell are all trialling a prototype glove.
The new gloves have improved heat transmission protection. It comes after Romain Grosjean suffered bad burns to his hands following his fiery smash in Bahrain last year.
Credit to the FIA for pushing though the new safety improvements.
AND THE NEW
Mercedes trackside engineering director, Andrew Shovlin, says that Lewis Hamilton’s 10-place penalty for an engine change – rather than a completely new powertrain – is a calculated risk.
He said: “We’re simulating all the races until the end of the year and obviously the thing you definitely don’t want to do is fail during a race and then have to take a penalty anyway.
T”hen there’s also a performance element, because the power units do lose a bit of horsepower over their life.
“The bit that most contributes to the reliability and the performance is the ICE itself – and it’s better to take 10 places than start at the back.”
LEW BEAUTY
Lewis Hamilton is hoping for a Turkish delight – despite being forced to take a 10-place penalty on Sunday.
As SunSport reported earlier this week, the world champion risked being bumped to the back of the grid for taking a new powerunit in the back of his Mercedes.
F1 rules allow drivers to use three engines, plus their components, during the course of a season. Any additional parts will incur grid penalties for the grands prix.
However, Merc have only replaced the internal combustion engine (ICE) in his motor – keeping his penalties to a minimum so he can still fight Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
Hamilton is now eyeing up clinching pole in qualifying on Saturday to start just outside of the top-10 before embarking on a major fightback through the field.
He said: “I have a lot of work to do on Sunday. The other drivers are going to be hard to pass. They seem to be improving more and more throughout the year.
“I need to be on pole to limit the loss and then understand the car to do the best I can and find the right balance.”
GASSED
Pierre Gasly was having trouble with understeer during his practice session.
He finished ninth after the second practice.

SECOND PRACTICE RESULTS
What another impressive drive from Lewis Hamilton.

FP2 IS DONE
Advantage Hamilton, despite the penalty. Red Bull have work to do.
And could Ferrari be in with a shout on Sunday?
PROBLEM FOR OCON
The session is over but the Frenchman is stuck on the grid. He’s stuck in neutral and cannot get moving again.

FP2 IS DONE AND HAMILTON LEADS LECLERC
Hamilton topped the morning session too and is looking good in Istanbul, despite having that 10-place grid penalty to contend with.
Verstappen down in fifth while Perez improved to land fourth. This is not shaping up to be the weekend Red Bull were hoping for.
GASLY NOW SPINS
Maybe it was his short arms? Interestingly, there have been few spins or errors today. The track really has gripped up from 2020 when it was all sorts of a mess.

X RATED FROM RAIKKONEN
He’s swearing like a trooper over the team’s radio because his water bottle has been leaking.
Put cleanly, he want’s to know why it is taking so long to fix the problem…
GASLY COMPLAINS OF HAVING…ERR SHORT ARMS
The AlphaTauri man is having a few issues down in eighth place. He’s just told his team he’s having a bit of trouble steering.
He said: “I think my arms are too short to turn the wheel.”
That’s a first.
USUAL SERVICE RESUMED
Hamilton is leading the way from Leclerc. Bottas in P3. Perez P4 and Verstappen down in fifth place.
Red Bull certainly have their work cut out here, it seems.

LECLERC IS NOW SETTING THE PACE
Wile Norris, Perez and Hamilton are all very close to each other. This is shaping up to be fairly competitive.

FP2 IS GO
And the Haas cars are first out on track.

ASTON MARTIN HAVE WORK TO DO
Lance Stroll took pole in Turkey last year, in FP1 he was only 17th while Sebastian Vettel was in P13.

ALMOST TIME FOR FP2
Have Red Bull managed to make improvements to Verstappen’s car? Can he close that gap to Hamilton, who has that engine penalty looming on Sunday.
HOW FP1 FINISHED
A look at the lap times in Turkey.

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F1 returns this weekend and there has already been a big twist.Lewis Hamilton has taken a new combustion engine, exceeding his allocation of engine changes.
And that means a ten-place grid penalty for Sunday’s race in Istanbul.
Follow all the action with our live blog below…
JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET A FREE £10 BONUS WITH 100s OF GAMES TO PLAY AND NO DEPOSIT REQUIRED (Ts&Cs apply)
RED BULL ADMIT ‘BALANCE MISH-MASH’
Red Bull boss Christian Horner admits his team have their work cut out if they are to help Max Verstappen return top of the championship with victory in the Turkish GP.
He said: “We’ve got a little bit of a balance mish-mash at the moment. The circuit is a lot grippier than it was last year and we’re just a little bit out of the window with Max on set-up.
“It’s going to be a busy night tonight, burning the midnight oil with the engineers and no doubt back in the factory at Milton Keynes.
“We know we’ve got a good car so it’s just a matter of getting into that window.”
THINKING OUTSIDE OF THE GLOVE BOX
SunSport’s Ben Hunt writes: Email has just landed in my inbox telling me that Hamilton, Vettel, Sainz, Ricciardo and Russell are all trialling a prototype glove.
The new gloves have improved heat transmission protection. It comes after Romain Grosjean suffered bad burns to his hands following his fiery smash in Bahrain last year.
Credit to the FIA for pushing though the new safety improvements.
AND THE NEW
Mercedes trackside engineering director, Andrew Shovlin, says that Lewis Hamilton’s 10-place penalty for an engine change – rather than a completely new powertrain – is a calculated risk.
He said: “We’re simulating all the races until the end of the year and obviously the thing you definitely don’t want to do is fail during a race and then have to take a penalty anyway.
T”hen there’s also a performance element, because the power units do lose a bit of horsepower over their life.
“The bit that most contributes to the reliability and the performance is the ICE itself – and it’s better to take 10 places than start at the back.”
LEW BEAUTY
Lewis Hamilton is hoping for a Turkish delight – despite being forced to take a 10-place penalty on Sunday.
As SunSport reported earlier this week, the world champion risked being bumped to the back of the grid for taking a new powerunit in the back of his Mercedes.
F1 rules allow drivers to use three engines, plus their components, during the course of a season. Any additional parts will incur grid penalties for the grands prix.
However, Merc have only replaced the internal combustion engine (ICE) in his motor – keeping his penalties to a minimum so he can still fight Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
Hamilton is now eyeing up clinching pole in qualifying on Saturday to start just outside of the top-10 before embarking on a major fightback through the field.
He said: “I have a lot of work to do on Sunday. The other drivers are going to be hard to pass. They seem to be improving more and more throughout the year.
“I need to be on pole to limit the loss and then understand the car to do the best I can and find the right balance.”
GASSED
Pierre Gasly was having trouble with understeer during his practice session.
He finished ninth after the second practice.

SECOND PRACTICE RESULTS
What another impressive drive from Lewis Hamilton.

FP2 IS DONE
Advantage Hamilton, despite the penalty. Red Bull have work to do.
And could Ferrari be in with a shout on Sunday?
PROBLEM FOR OCON
The session is over but the Frenchman is stuck on the grid. He’s stuck in neutral and cannot get moving again.

FP2 IS DONE AND HAMILTON LEADS LECLERC
Hamilton topped the morning session too and is looking good in Istanbul, despite having that 10-place grid penalty to contend with.
Verstappen down in fifth while Perez improved to land fourth. This is not shaping up to be the weekend Red Bull were hoping for.
GASLY NOW SPINS
Maybe it was his short arms? Interestingly, there have been few spins or errors today. The track really has gripped up from 2020 when it was all sorts of a mess.

X RATED FROM RAIKKONEN
He’s swearing like a trooper over the team’s radio because his water bottle has been leaking.
Put cleanly, he want’s to know why it is taking so long to fix the problem…
GASLY COMPLAINS OF HAVING…ERR SHORT ARMS
The AlphaTauri man is having a few issues down in eighth place. He’s just told his team he’s having a bit of trouble steering.
He said: “I think my arms are too short to turn the wheel.”
That’s a first.
USUAL SERVICE RESUMED
Hamilton is leading the way from Leclerc. Bottas in P3. Perez P4 and Verstappen down in fifth place.
Red Bull certainly have their work cut out here, it seems.

LECLERC IS NOW SETTING THE PACE
Wile Norris, Perez and Hamilton are all very close to each other. This is shaping up to be fairly competitive.

FP2 IS GO
And the Haas cars are first out on track.

ASTON MARTIN HAVE WORK TO DO
Lance Stroll took pole in Turkey last year, in FP1 he was only 17th while Sebastian Vettel was in P13.

ALMOST TIME FOR FP2
Have Red Bull managed to make improvements to Verstappen’s car? Can he close that gap to Hamilton, who has that engine penalty looming on Sunday.
HOW FP1 FINISHED
A look at the lap times in Turkey.

P1 IS DONE AND HAMILTON SETS THE BENCHMARK
The world champion is almost half a second up on Verstappen.
Leclerc, Bottas, Sainz, Ocon, Norris, Gasly, Alonso and Perez complete the top 10 in Istanbul.
PEREZ IN P10
Now, I know it is only P1 and we cannot read too much into it, but the Mexican being down in 10th is not where Red Bull would want him to be.Bottas is in P4, while the Ferrari duo of Leclerc and Sainz are P3 and P5 respectively.Perez needs to get up to speed in P2 or risk another poor weekend.
HAMILTON ON TOP IN TURKEY
He’s 0.425 seconds ahead of Verstappen, who sits in second place.
That new engine might trigger a big penalty, but it looks well worth it, as he is clearly quicker than his nearest challenger.
GLOVES ARE ON
Email has just landed in my inbox telling me that Hamilton, Vettel, Sainz, Ricciardo and Russell are all trialling a prototype glove this morning.
The new gloves have improved heat transmission protection. It comes after Romain Grosjean suffered bad burns to his hands following his fiery smash in Bahrain last year.
Credit to the FIA for pushing though the new safety improvements.
TRACK TIMES ARE TUMBLING
Pirelli say a combination of their new rubber, better grip and conditions after resulting in new records being set in Turkey.
To give you an idea of how much easier the conditions are this year (with softer tyres too) the fastest #FP1 time so far (from @LewisHamilton) is already more than 10 seconds quicker than the best #FP1 time from last year! #Fit4F1— Pirelli Motorsport (@pirellisport) October 8, 2021

BREAKING NEWS: HAMILTON WILL GET A GRID PENALTY AFTER TAKING A NEW ENGINE FOR THIS RACE
As it stands it will be a 10-place grid drop, but he could yet take more components that would add to his tally.
He has used three power units, this internal combustion engine (ICE) is his fourth.
He was coy about it yesterday during the press conference but this has made it very-much advantage Max Verstappen in Turkey.
HAMILTON AND VERSTAPPEN BOTH ON TRACK
The Mercedes man tops the lot after eight minutes while Ferrari are doing some serious aero testing on Carlos Sainz’s car.

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