Lewis Hamilton was the fastest in the first free practice sessions of the Formula 1 Turkish Grand Prix, scheduled for Sunday. On the Istanbul track the Mercedes driver stopped the clock at 1.24.178, ahead of title rival Max Verstappen. The Red Bull Dutchman is more than half a second behind and precedes Charles Leclerc’s first Ferrari. Bottas, Sainz and Ocon follow.
In any case, Hamilton will not start from the first place on the starting grid on Sunday: Mercedes has surprisingly announced that the English driver will change the internal combustion engine of his power unit, and therefore will suffer a penalty of 10 positions in view of the race.
For the seven-time world champion it will be the fourth ICE changed over the course of the season: even if he should get pole position on Saturday, Hamilton will start from eleventh place in the Grand Prix.
The race pace shown by the Ferraris was excellent, only lower than that of the world champion.