The Formula 1 teams have one more free practice session on Saturday morning in Russia to prepare themselves for qualifying which takes place in the afternoon. Will Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas once again manage to get ahead of the competition?
Prior to the Formula 1-weekend the expectations were that Mercedes would excel during the Russian Grand Prix. During both the morning and afternoon sessions this turned out true, because during the first two free practices Mercedes managed to set the fastest times. Bottas set the fastest time twice, while Hamilton followed in second place.
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The British driver will have little competition from Max Verstappen this weekend. The Dutchman announced on Friday that he and his team have chosen to replace his engine, which means he will start the race from the back of the grid. Although Verstappen will try to score as many points as possible, a podium finish seems to be too much to ask for.
Nevertheless, it promises to be an exciting qualifying session. There is a good chance that the drivers will be affected by heavy rain in the afternoon, making qualifying unpredictable. It seems to be to the advantage of Verstappen who will hope that Hamilton will suffer from the bad weather.