Engine change docks Hamilton and Sainz, and Red Bull has disappointing day, in preparation for Sunday’s Turkish Grand Prix.
ISTANBUL, Turkey—On a day run in dry conditions, Lewis Hamilton set the pace by recording the fastest lap of Friday practice, finishing with a 1:23:804 ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas. But that performance was overshadowed by a ten-place grid penalty that was levied because Mercedes changed his engine for this weekend’s Turkish Grand Prix. Besides Hamilton, Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz had to make a full engine change and will begin the race from the back of the grid.
Despite its new livery dedicated to the Honda engine company that supplies the team’s powerplants, Red Bull had a disappointing day with Sergio Perez taking fourth and Max Verstappen fifth. McLaren’s Lando Norris followed in sixth, while Fernando Alonso was seventh and Alpine teammate Ocon eighth. Pierre Gasly took ninth. Antonio Giovinazzi, hoping to race in his Alfa Romeo next year, proved that he still could achieve it by finishing in tenth.
With rain forecasted for this weekend, Friday was the only chance for all drivers to achieve a good lap in dry conditions, and the sessions were relatively accident-free.
Perhaps the strangest incident occurred when Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Raikkonen had his drink bottle leak in his car, then complaining that liquid was running over one of his shoes. It turned out that the Finn had disconnected the line from his helmet, and it dropped down afterward.
Qualifying will be televised Saturday morning on ESPN2 beginning at 8a U.S. Eastern Time.
