Turkish GP: Lewis Hamilton on ‘pole’ aim to ‘limit loss’ of penalty as Max Verstappen hunts Red Bull answers

Lewis Hamilton’s Turkish GP Friday? Confirmation of an engine penalty but two fastest practice times. Max Verstappen’s? Not much pace, at all…; The title rivals react and look ahead to a crucial qualifying day at Istanbul Park, all live on Sky Sports F1

Lewis Hamilton says he is still aiming for a Turkish GP ‘pole’ on Saturday to « limit the loss » of his grid penalty for Sunday’s race, while Max Verstappen admits Red Bull have a lot of work to do to catch up after a difficult start to the weekend.

The championship contenders had contrasting Fridays for different reasons in Istanbul – Hamilton started the day with confirmation of a new Mercedes engine and a 10-place penalty but went on to secure back-to-back fastest practice times, and Verstappen, although boosted by his rival’s grid drop, simply wasn’t comfortable, or quick, on track.

It sets up an intriguing Saturday with Hamilton knowing he will start the race 10 places lower than his qualifying position, and Verstappen facing the possibility of not capitalising on that if Red Bull can’t up the pace.

In Hamilton’s mind, his target is clear – a Turkish GP ‘pole’, even though he would not start in that position come Sunday.

« I need to be on pole to limit the loss, » insisted Hamilton, the title leader by just two points.

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Anthony Davidson was at the SkyPad to analyse the major talking points from Friday’s practice sessions ahead of the Turkish GP

« Then of course I need to understand the car to do the best in terms of long runs. I need to find the right balance. »

Hamilton was 0.4 and 0.6s quicker than Verstappen, who was second and fifth, in the practice sessions, with Charles Leclerc in the Ferrari actually more competitive than both Red Bull cars compared to the Mercedes.

If the Practice Two results translated to qualifying, Leclerc would start on pole ahead of Valtteri Bottas.

« They’re going to be hard to pass, » said Hamilton of Ferrari. « As are Alpine and McLarens, they seem to be improving more and more through the year, I don’t know where that’s coming from.

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Mercedes trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin explains Lewis Hamilton’s 10-place grid penalty at the Turkish GP and why the team are hopeful the new engine can last until the end of the season

« It’s good to see them getting stronger and I hope they’re strong next year. »

Hamilton added that Mercedes « started with a really good set-up » and that he « doesn’t know how much more there is to find », as he softened the blow of his penalty for a new Internal Combustion Engine with one of his strongest Fridays of the year.

What happened to Verstappen and can Red Bull fix issues?

Verstappen, by contrast, never had his Red Bull car in the sweet spot at all.

The RB16B – this weekend dressed in a special white Honda tribute livery – has looked the most balanced car all season but on Friday appeared snappy and, as Sky F1’s Anthony Davidson described it, « on the edge ».

« We have a balance mish-mash at the moment, » admitted team boss Christian Horner. « The circuit is a lot grippier than it was last year and we are just out of the window on set-up. It will be a busy night tonight.

« We just need to understand the issue. We have a good car and it’s just about getting into that performance window – l don’t think we hit that today. »

Verstappen was also a touch bemused.

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Max Verstappen admits he struggled during the first two practice sessions, and the team will be looking for answers ahead of Saturday’s qualifying session

« We tried a few things compared to P1 but also P1 wasn’t that great so we’re still looking around a bit what to do, » he said. « Of course it’s a bit different here, we don’t have a lot of data with these kind of cars. We’ve got a bit of an evening ahead to make it a bit better because today wasn’t the best of days.

« Hopefully of course it will improve otherwise it’s not looking too good. We’ll see what we can do overnight. »

Asked about Hamilton’s grid penalty, Verstappen added: « We have to focus on ourselves and today wasn’t that good. We’ll work on that. »

An important Friday evening and Saturday awaits for Red Bull, who are desperate to land both the drivers’ and constructors’ titles this year.

« There’s definitely pace in that car, they’re just struggling for consistency at the moment, » said Sky F1’s Jenson Button.

Watch all the action live on Sky Sports F1 on Saturday, with Practice Three from 9.45am and Qualifying from 12pm.