© Getty ImagesFree Practice Update - Portuguese Grand Prix 2021Round three is underway at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve, Portimão.
Portugal Pre-Race Programme© Red Bull Racing Honda
It's safe to say that the 2021 Formula One World Championship has got off to an action-packed start, with both Bahrain and Imola providing some incredible racing.
So, as we head to Portugal for the third round of the season there's a lot of excitement spreading around the paddock for racing to resume, even if it's only been two weeks since Italy.
Ahead of taking to the track Max was also in a bouyant mood saying; "I am looking forward to going back to Portugal, we were on the podium there last year and I think we have a better car now so I’m looking forward to extracting everything we can from the car and have a bit of fun out there."
Max Practices In Portimão© Getty Images
Friday's Free Practice One got the weekend underway on this rollercoaster of a track, which our Test and Reserve Driver Alex Albon described as "one of the most undulating tracks we go to on the calendar."
The hour session saw Max finish in P2 with his best time of 1:19.673. The Dutchman managed a total of 23 laps. Teammate Checo wasn't far behind in P3. He set a time of 1:19.846 after 22 laps.
The Bulls were back out in the afternoon for Free Practice Two and Max carried on where he left off in FP1. He brought his RB16B back in P2, setting a 1:19.980 and a total of 26 laps. Checo managed to finish P10 with a 1:20.516. The Mexican racked up 28 laps.
For the final practice session of the weekend, Free Practice Three, Max posted his fastest time of the weekend so far with a 1:18.489. This was good enough for P1 and he managed 21 laps. Checo registered a 1:18.840, also his fastest lap so far in Portugal. He came back P4 after 25 laps.
Portuguese Grand Prix 2021: Free Practice
About To Enter The Drop© Getty Images
Checking Out The Competition© Getty Images
Heading Over The Hill© Getty Images
Riding the Rollercoaster© Getty Images
Releasing The Bull Into The Wild© Getty Images
In The Office Ready For Work© Getty Images
Sunshine Smile For Max© Getty Images
All Smiles For Sergio Ahead Of FP1© Getty Images
Eyes On The Data For Practice© Getty Images
To The Garage For Friday Practice© Getty Images
A Positive Friday For The Bulls© Getty Images
Blue Sky Delight In Portugal© Getty Images
It seems tight with Mercedes this weekend again and the car felt alright but we still have some work to do.
"It feels great to be back on track in Portimao, the circuit is amazing but the conditions are very similar to last year and the tarmac is super slippery. The tyres have of course changed and we all lost a bit of grip from the cars compared to last year. It’s very tricky out there and not easy to switch the tyres on which is a shame because it seems to be all about tyre preparation and temperature. It’s the same situation for everyone so we just need to make sure we are on top of the car so we can make the best out of it. It seems tight with Mercedes this weekend again and the car felt alright but we still have some work to do ahead of tomorrow, that’s for sure.”
“Today we had very similar track surface conditions to last year with limited grip on the new tarmac so it’s really hard to get the tyres to work. It’s not easy so the main focus is to understand what’s going on with the tyres. I think the pace on the mediums was good but when we went on to the soft compound we didn’t find any lap time so we’ll need to look into that and hopefully sort it out in time for qualifying. It’s hard to compare with the last round in Imola as it’s a very different track here and everywhere just has less grip overall due to the tarmac but I think we have pretty good pace in the car so hopefully we will be in the mix to fight for pole tomorrow.”
| Position | Driver | Team | Time | | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
| Valtteri Bottas | Max Verstappen | Sergio Pérez | Charles Leclerc | Lewis Hamilton | Pierre Gasly | George Russell | Lando Norris | Carlos Sainz | Esteban Ocon |
| Mercedes | Red Bull Racing Honda | Red Bull Racing Honda | Ferrari | Mercedes | AlphaTauri | Williams | McLaren | Ferrari | Alpine |
| 1.19.648 | 1.19.673 | 1.19.846 | 1.19.884 | 1.19.967 | 1.20.444 | 1.20.529 | 1.20.635 | 1.20.680 | 1.20.800 |
| Position | Driver | Team | Time | | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
| Lewis Hamilton | Max Verstappen | Valtteri Bottas | Carlos Sainz | Fernando Alonso | Esteban Ocon | Charles Leclerc | Daniel Ricciardo | Lance Stroll | Sergio Pérez |
| Mercedes | Red Bull Racing Honda | Mercedes | Ferrari | Alpine | Alpine | Ferrari | McLaren | Aston Martin | Red Bull Racing Honda |
| 1.19.837 | 1.19.980 | 1.20.181 | 1.20.197 | 1.20.220 | 1.20.235 | 1.20.360 | 1.20.418 | 1.20.427 | 1.20.516 |
| Position | Driver | Team | Time | | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
| Max Verstappen | Lewis Hamilton | Valtteri Bottas | Sergio Pérez | Esteban Ocon | Charles Leclerc | Carlos Sainz | Lando Norris | Pierre Gasly | Kimi Räikkönen |
| Red Bull Racing Honda | Mercedes | Mercedes | Red Bull Racing Honda | Alpine | Ferrari | Ferrari | McLaren | AlphaTauri | Afla Romeo |
| 1.18.489 | 1.18.725 | 1.18.820 | 1.18.840 | 1.18.860 | 1.19.001 | 1.19.050 | 1.19.272 | 1.19.374 | 1.19.415 |
