It was so good last year, F1 decided to do it again! That is the Turkish Grand Prix in Istanbul Park! Last year’s race featured wet and slippery conditions that made for an exciting race that some called the best of the season. The circuit features noteworthy turns like turn 1 which is referred to as the Turkish Corkscrew, the four-apex turn 8 nicknamed Diabolica, and the uphill sweeper on the back straight which has earned the nickname Faux Rouge.
Execution will be what’s on the mind of Red Bull Racing as they aim for Max Verstappen to retake the lead in the driver’s championship. The team will need to have an almost perfect weekend both in the pit and on the track. Their prospects for the race look good if they can nail their setup and execute flawlessly. Look for Red Bull to have a shot at the win here, with a podium a safe bet regardless. We can expect one AlphaTauri car to finish in the points and the other just outside the points.
Elsewhere on the grid, Mercedes fared well in Turkey last year and we should expect them to be strong again. After the lead cars we can expect to see a tight battle between McLaren who aim to continue their success and Ferrari who have been building up a respectable pace over the season. Don’t be surprised to see an Alpine and an Aston Martin battling at this point. At this point in the order we can expect to see some team cars of the higher midfield runners if they are not able to stay together. Next look for a Williams as they seem to have made some breakthroughs during the season that have lifted them from the back of the grid. Then we should see both Alfa Romeo cars battling the second Williams car. Finally the who Haas cars will almost certainly bring up the rear.
US TV SCHEDULE
Practice 1 – Friday, October 8 – 4.25AM – ESPN2
Practice 2 – Friday, October 8 – 7.55AM – ESPN2
Practice 3 – Saturday, October 9 – 4.55AM – ESPN2
Qualifying – Saturday, October 9 – 7.55AM – ESPN22
Grand Prix Sunday – Sunday, October 10 – 6.30AM – ESPN2
Race – Sunday, October 10 – 7.55AM – ESPN2
CIRCUIT INFO
Direction: Counterclockwise
Turns: 14
Race laps: 58
Lap Distance: 5.338km (3.316 mi)
Race Distance: 309.396km
Longest Straight: 650m
Top Speed: 330kph (205mph)
Average Speed: 227kph (141mph)
Lap Record: 1:24.770, Juan Pablo Montoya, 2005
Full throttle: %
Downforce Level: High
Cooling Requirement: High
Typical Strategy: 1 Stop Race
Pitlane Length: TBCm
Tyres: Hard (C2), Medium (C3), Soft (C4)(2020 Hard (C1), Medium (C2), Soft (C3))
2020 RESULTS
Race Info.
Pole: Lance Stroll, Racing Point, 1:47.765
Race laps: 58
Fast race lap: Lando Norris, McLaren, 1:36.806
Podium
1. Lewis Hamilton – Mercedes
2. Sergio Preez – Racing Point
3. Sebastian Vettel – Ferrari
CURRENT STANDINGS
Drivers
1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, 246.5
2. Max Verstappen, Red Bull, 244.5
3. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes, 151
4. Lando Norris, McLaren, 139
5. Sergio Perez, Red Bull, 120
6. Carlos Sainz, Ferrari, 112.5
7. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, 104
8. Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren, 95
9. Pierre Gasly, AlphaTauri, 66
10. Fernando Alonso, Alpine, 58
11. Esteban Ocon, Alpine, 45
12. Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin, 35
13. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin, 24
14. Yuki Tsunoda, AlphaTauri, 18
15. George Russell, Williams, 16
16. Nicholas Latifi, Williams, 7
17. Kimi Raikkonen, Alfa Romeo, 6
18. Antonio Giovinazzi, Alfa Romeo, 1
19. Mick Schumacher, Haas, 0
20. Robert Kubica, Alfa Romeo, 0
21. Nikita Mazepin, Haas, 0
Constructors
1. Mercedes, 397.5
2. Red Bull, 364.5
3. McLaren, 234
4. Ferrari, 216.5
5. Alpine, 103
6. AlphaTauri, 84
7. Aston Martin, 59
8. Williams, 23
9. Alfa Romeo, 7
10. Haas, 0
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