US Grand Prix 2021 - Valtteri Bottas fastest in FP1, Lewis Hamilton second as Mercedes clear of Max Verstappen
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Published 22/10/2021 at 17:58 GMT
Championship leader Max Verstappen recorded the third best time at Free Practice 1 on Friday afternoon at the US Grand Prix. The fastest pair were both from Mercedes, though, as Lewis Hamilton was fractionally behind his Finnish teammate, Valtteri Bottas. Hamilton is the current champion and trails Verstappen by six points so far this season.
Vallteri Bottas (Mercedes) - GP of United States of America 2021
Image credit: Getty Images
Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas was fastest in FP1, ahead of his teammate Lewis Hamilton in second as the US Grand Prix got underway at the Circuit of the Americas in Texas.
The pair were well ahead of the rest of the pack, with current championship leader Max Verstappen almost a second behind. Bottas recorded a time of 1:34.874, and the reigning champion put down a time of 1:34.919.
Bottas, who is leaving the team at the end of the season, will incur a five-place grid penalty after taking his sixth engine of the season so far.
There was plenty of drama further down the pack with several drivers finding themselves in the gravel. Alpine man Fernando Alonso brought a red flag early in the session as a precaution following technical problems, and he was eventually able to return to action with a working car.
Ferrari’s Monegasque Charles Leclerc also flew into the gravel after losing his rear and was fortunate not to collide with the barriers, and was lucky to be able to start again without assistance.
Late in the session, Sergio Perez and Mick Schumacher came together as the Spaniard thought he was being let through by the German, only for Schumacher to turn and make contact with his rival.
Bottas is not the only driver facing a penalty, as it was confirmed George Russell and Sebastian Vettel are taking fresh power units.
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