Hamilton takes pole, Bottas 2nd, Verstappen 3rd
Hamilton could break all-time race win record at Portimao
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Racing Point had originally told everyone that Lance Stroll's illness was not Covid-19 related.
But that changed this week as they confirmed Stroll had actually had coronavirus.
Here is what Lance Stroll tweeted...
Image source, Lance StrollIn other big news this week...
Racing Point driver Lance Stroll says he tested positive for coronavirus after the Eifel Grand Prix weekend.
The Canadian - who did not race - was unwell and displayed a number of Covid-19 symptoms at the Nurburgring race but was not tested over the weekend.
Stroll said his symptoms were "pretty mild" and he went home on the morning of the 11 October race and took a test.
He had another test on Monday, before this weekend's Portuguese Grand Prix, and returned a negative result.
And this was how the two drivers reacted on Twitter.
First Kevin Magnussen...
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...and Romain Grosjean.
Image source, Romain Grosjean
Image source, Getty ImagesDrivers Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen will both leave Haas at the end of the 2020 season.
France's Grosjean, 34, has been with Haas since the team entered Formula 1 in 2016 while Dane Magnussen, 28, moved from Renault in 2017.
Grosjean is 18th in the drivers' championship with two points and Magnussen is 19th having scored one.
It means Haas, currently ninth in the constructors' standings, will have an entirely new driver line-up for 2021.
It's been a busy few days for Formula 1 with a couple of big stories.
Andrew Benson
BBC Sport’s chief F1 writer
Form ahead of qualifying at the Portuguese Grand Prix remains uncertain after an inconclusive final practice session at Portimao.
Valtteri Bottas led Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen as would might be expected, but the pattern of the session was unusual.
The Mercedes drivers set their times relatively early in the session and Verstappen set his fastest time on the slower medium tyre. Despite this, the Dutchman was just 0.154 seconds off the pace - although he did go out on the fastest soft tyre and failed to improve.
Mercedes will start qualifying favourites for pole, but Verstappen’s potential remains a question mark.
Alpha Tauri’s Pierre Gasly was fourth fastest, ahead of Red Bull’s Alex Albon and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, with the Ferrari seeming to benefit from the latest in a series of aerodynamic upgrades following their poor start to the season.
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Jennifer Harris: Albon? Some people thrive on controversy, others don't. Strikes me that the more the media focus in on Alex's shortcomings the worse he performs. Give the boy a break peeps, he deserves better than being teamed with the world's most egotistical person.
Image source, Reuters#bbcf1
Kevin Prior: What's going on with Mercedes... are they doing long runs?
John K Wilkinson: With Alonso back on the grid next year, can we hope and see Damon Hill or maybe even Mika Hakkinen returning to F1. Nothing would surprise me any more.
It's been a strange year but not quite sure we'll see a Hill/Hakkinen shock appearance on the grid, John!
Jolyon Palmer
Former Renault driver on BBC Radio 5 live
The angle that it [the drain cover] is sticking up at is not very nice if someone was to go over that so I think it's the right decision to stop the session slightly earlier.
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Three sessions done and Valtteri Bottas has been top in all three of them.
Lewis Hamilton is second, Max Verstappen third.
Pierre Gasly, one day after his car was on fire, was fourth, with Alexander Albon, Charles Leclerc, Carlos Sainz, Sergio Perez, Lando Norris and Esteban Ocon completing the top 10.
We have some debris on track and also a drain cover has come up around the exit of the final corner so that ends the fun a minute earlier than it should do.
Valtteri Bottas two minutes away from a clean sweep of practice glory this weekend.
Some random radio messages from Charles Leclerc, who says he is hearing the radio of Lewis Hamilton.
Jolyon Palmer
Former Renault driver on BBC Radio 5 live
What's going on? Pierre Gasly is still fourth from his first laps of the session?!
Jolyon Palmer
Former Renault driver on BBC Radio 5 live
Track temperature is still less than 30 degrees, it's not hot out there and Albon saying it's difficult to get the tyres up to temperature.
This is what we saw yesterday and with this being a shorter lap, there's also just less time for drivers to go out on their out lap and really put temperature into those front tyres particular - but Albon struggling with the rears.
Image source, ReutersMax Verstappen asks his team why he's going so slow.
"It's wind related," is the reply to which Verstappen says: "well, it must be a hurricane then."
A good effort from George Russell so far as he is 15th and ahead of Racing Point's Lance Stroll and the Alfa Romeo of Antonio Giovinazzi.
Russell, who holds a perfect qualifying record over his team-mates during his time in F1, is three and a half tenths quicker than Nicholas Latifi.
Things are looking good at Haas. Well, apart from on the timing screens as Magnussen is 18th and Grosjean 20th - after both were dropped from the team for 2021 earlier this week.
Nicholas Latifi, whose own F1 future at Williams is also now looking shaky, is the man in the middle.
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