World news – AU – Hamilton prepares for history

For the first time of the year, Mercedes won’t be in the lead at the Grand Prix.

Ironically, this development may increase the likelihood that Lewis Hamilton will become the most successful racing driver in history on Sunday..

Hamilton starts the Turkish Grand Prix unexpectedly in sixth place on the grid, after Mercedes struggled in tough wet conditions on a track that the world champion said was less grip than ever.. .

The man most familiar with Hamilton is Canadian Lance Stroll, who took his first position in his career in what should be considered one of the biggest shocks in Formula 1 in years, if not decades..

The 22-year-old Canadian, whose billionaire father Lawrence funded his career and now owns the Racing Point team he leads for, had his moments in a four-year career, but you could have had good chances Would you like to place a bet on To be Stroll at center stage in Istanbul Park.

He had looked good in wet weather before – especially when Williams qualified for fourth place at Monza in his debut season in 2017 – and that was a great performance, even if his teammate Sergio Perez, who was faster for most of the session, was Frustrated on the last lap and forced to claim third.

Stroll said: « Precision, focus and flow. ». “It is unpredictable what the car will do. But when everything works the tires are on and the car feels good, it’s like a dance. It is the only way to describe it.

To achieve his full potential, Stroll now needs to find a way to find that feeling on a regular basis, especially in dry areas..

The Saturday sessions provided Hamilton the conditions in which he put on some of his greatest performances – and sports -.

However, there was something about the combination of a newly laid track surface, bitumen still leaking out, and rain that simply wasn’t working for a Mercedes.

It was all about Formula 1’s less attractive and more important technical explanations – tire temperature.

Racing Point – whose car has been dubbed « the Pink Mercedes » because it is largely a carbon version of the 2019 Hamilton car – could produce it, but for some reason the 2020 Mercedes couldn’t.

Hamilton said, « We did our best and it was as fast as possible. ». «  The track looks awful, it’s just like driving on ice. But for whatever reason, some people can run tires better than us.

The weirdness of the day is underlined by the fact that Hamilton – certainly one of the greatest drivers of all time and claiming to be the greatest ever – was 4 years old. 795 seconds slower than Stroll, whoever neither changes it nor changes it is unlikely to.

In terms of winning the tournament, Hamilton is still on favorable ground.

He is about to claim his seventh world title, the equivalent of the record set by Michael Schumacher. And since Hamilton has already surpassed the German winning record, that would make him the most successful driver ever.

To maintain the title race in the next race, Hamilton’s team-mate Valtteri Bottas has to beat the Briton by more than seven points.. .

But Bottas not only starts three positions behind from Hamilton, but he’s also less adept when it comes to track fighting skills..

Hamilton already has the lead over his teammate, and based on their respective records, you’d expect him to advance faster than Bottas..

Hamilton knows the title is within his reach, but insists he will treat this weekend like any other.

He said, « I did my best. ». “I am happy in general. I didn’t spin and didn’t make any mistakes and did everything I could with what I had.

« We’ll see, » Hamilton said.. « You have to jump to opportunities if they arise. Congratulations Lance is on first place and I’m looking forward to a fight with them.

The odds for an exciting race, on a track with a history of racing are good but where the slippery surface adds a new challenge, are good.

The Dutch – who is disappointed at losing first place once drivers switch to mid-wheels at the end of the qualifiers, having looked hugely powerful on « extreme » wet tires earlier – would like to take advantage of the fact that Mercedes have the traffic to negotiate before That they could challenge her.

The weather is expected to be dry, although there is a 40% chance of rain. But the track is wet or dry, it will be difficult, and the real picture of the figure hasn’t yet emerged this weekend.

« Maybe we looked like amateurs there, » said Renault driver Daniel Ricciardo as he contemplated the fifth qualifiers, behind Red Bull II from Alex Albon, in a session in which he fell driver after driver due to circumstance, or a wide run.

« But the best way to describe it is like a toboggan run – you know, when doing these driving courses.

« If it’s wet, it’s wild. But if it’s dry, we know how slippery it is. I’ll bet a lot of money, it’s not going to be a dull and outright race.

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Formula 1, Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula 1 Team, Max Verstappen, Turkish Grand Prix, Red Bull Racing