Lewis Hamilton returned from COVID but experienced hybrid issues. Sergio Perez, last week’s winner, logged in seventh on the day.
ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates—Friday, December 11th—In the final practice session in a difficult 2020 Formula 1 season, Valtteri Bottas set the fastest time in Friday’s practice in preparation for Sunday evening’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at the Yas Marina Circuit.
Bottas clocking a 1:36:276 best lap ahead of Mercedes teammate and newly-crowned world champion Lewis Hamilton, who returned to action following a series of negative COVID-19 tests. Max Verstappen, who had the fastest time in the opening session, was third in the Red Bull.
Most of the top drivers tried to set the fastest lap in the second session, which would be in the same conditions as the Sunday race. Soft tires were too much of a match at the circuit and many, including Hamilton. They ran wide and exceeded track limits, which resulted in having their lap times deleted. But drivers succeeded on the medium set of tires, which is how Bottas set his best time.
Without incident early, the last practice session was challenging. With 20 minutes to go, Kimi Raikkonen’s Alfa Romeo caught fire. The Finn pulled the car over to the side and escaped while marshals extinguished the flames.
George Russell, who had the best chance to win a race last week when he substituted for Hamilton, returned to his regular drive at Williams and encountered an engine problem.
And Hamilton was another driver who experienced trouble. After stopping in the pit lane with a clutch issue, Hamilton managed to restart the hybrid system, which is new to Mercedes but not to rival teams. In the end, Hamilton could only manage 30 laps.
Alexander Albon led the rest of the field by finishing fourth in the second Red Bull, while McLaren’s Lando Norris and Renault’s Esteban Ocon were fifth and sixth.
Seventh went to last week’s winner Sergio Perez in his Racing Point.
Qualifying sessions, as usual, are on tap for Saturday.
