Mercedes unfazed by championship title pressure as Hamilton tops FP1 times

With just 2 points separating Lewis Hamilton (246.5) and Max Verstappen (244.5) the 2021 season is becoming one of the most thrilling seasons in recent years.

Including the Turkish GP, there are 7 races left in the season and the title is closer than ever! This year has been the closest Formula 1 title fight (after 15 rounds) since 1994.

Lewis Hamilton set his intentions clear early by clinching the fastest time in FP1. Hamilton was the latest winner in Istanbul, winning last year’s chaotic Turkish GP.

Down in second was the other protagonist in the championship, Max Verstappen, who finished 4 tenths down from the British driver.

In light of Lewis’s fast FP1 results the other news concerning the Mercedes star was the announcement that he will take a 10 place grid penalty for taking on a new combustion engine for this weekend’s race.

In addition to Lewis, Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz also picked up a grid penalty, this time more substantial due to the whole power unit being changed therefore, placing him at the very back of the grid for Sunday’s race.

The session went according to plan and was without any spins or crashes with teams aiming for longer stint practices, testing tyre durability, and training pit stops.

There is a slight chance of rain on Sunday but if that does occur the track has been swept and deep cleaned to avoid the disasters of last years race.

Here are how the drivers classified:

_{Featured image source: twitter/mercedesAMGF1}