The Formula 1 race weekend in Portimão got underway, with Mercedes dominating the first practice sessions

Our race weekend in Portugal has started. The first practice sessions once again gave an indication of how the rest of the weekend might go and also the form of the individual stables on the Algarve circuit.

The first practice session at the Portimão circuit was as expected. So far this season, Valtteri Bottas has been doing well in the practice sessions and he also dominated the opening one. However, we’ll see how the Mercedes driver fares over the rest of the race weekend.

It was the Finnish driver who constantly took turns at the front with Max Verstappen. However, the Dutch driver was nearly three tenths of a second behind the top spot in the final standings. Third place went to his teammate Sergio Pérez ahead of Leclerc and Hamilton.

A solid seventh place for the Williams team went to George Russell, while the McLarens really just took the first practice session as a test run. For the first practice session, Alfa Romeo replaced Antonio Giovinazzi with Calum Ilotto. The latter, despite only being a reserve driver for the stable, managed to outperform both Haas plus Latifi in the Williams to finish seventeenth.

This is also a testament to where the Haas car is at the moment. But there was also a laughable moment, and that was when Sebastian Vettel in the Aston Martin accidentally stopped the McLaren mechanics.

In the second practice session, the weather was kind to the drivers. The sun shone on the track, warming the asphalt to almost 40 degrees Celsius.

The second practice session was also dominated by Mercedes, but this time it was Hamilton who defended the top spot. Verstappen again finished second ahead of Bottas. Fourth place went to the Spaniard Sainz ahead of both Alpine cars.

Mick Schumacher in the Haas complained of engine problems during practice. Yuki Tsunoda again gave his stable a small scare by committing a minor off-track excursion.

No dazzling performance by the McLarens today, but as every F1 fan knows, practice sessions should always be taken with a grain of salt, especially for McLaren. They show their strength especially in qualifying and the race itself.

But Max Verstappen has complained about the Algarve circuit. “It’s very unpredictable on the asphalt. It really slides a lot. I know it’s the same for everyone, but it’s really not fun to drive here.“

“Compared to last year, the tyres have changed and they have less grip this year, so we are counting on that. But it’s a shame. It’s all about tyre preparation, tyre temperature. I don’t think it should be like that.”

” It’s actually very similar to what we experienced here last year. I mean, in terms of the asphalt. It’s difficult to make the tyres work. I think the key will be to understand the tyres. Probably the best was on the medium compound, the softest of the tyres delivered was much worse.”

It is therefore very difficult to predict what Saturday’s qualifying will bring. It starts at 16:00 two hours after the end of the third and final practice session.

Source: F1 Sport