Formula One got back on track in changed circumstances on Friday but with Mercedes bringing a familiar look to the timing sheets as six times World champion Lewis Hamilton led team mate Valtteri Bottas one-two in Austrian Grand Prix free practice. The Briton did 41 laps and lapped with a best time of one minute 04.816 seconds in a damp and overcast session, 0.356 faster than the Finn.
The Mercedes driver, with a record 94 wins, is the most successful Formula One driver of all time. The following details his progression to the 2020 title.
'I could never have dreamed of being where I am today.'
Hamilton said he only realised the significance of what he had done when he came into the pitlane after taking the chequered flag.
Former Renault driver Robert Kubica suffered a life-changing crash in 2011 when a steel guardrail penetrated his car and arm in a minor rally in north-west Italy.
Force India's feuding team mates met on Thursday to reset their relationship after French rookie Esteban Ocon accused Mexican Sergio Perez of trying to kill him at last weekend's Belgian Grand Prix.
Doubts about Force India being able to race at Spa, the first Grand Prix since the August break, emerged on Wednesday with reports of legal complications.
Lewis Hamilton did 94 laps of Barcelona's Circuit de Catalunya on the soft C2 compound in a sunny afternoon session
They said creditors would be paid in full and all 405 jobs at the Silverstone-based team, that was co-owned by embattled Indian businessman Vijay Mallya and finished fourth last year, were safe.
Hamilton already had more race wins, pole positions and podium finishes than any other driver in the history of the sport.
Lewis Hamilton won in Sunday's Azerbaijan Grand Prix ahead of Kimi Raikkonen and took championship lead.
World championship leader Nico Rosberg ended the opening day of practice for the Formula One Japanese Grand Prix in a strong position after setting the pace in both sessions on Friday.
Lewis Hamilton took pole position at the Italian Grand Prix for the third year in a row on Saturday with Mercedes team mate and title rival Nico Rosberg joining the Briton on the front row of the grid.
McLaren are set to replace Mexican Sergio Perez with Danish rookie Kevin Magnussen for next season, media reports said on Monday.
Force India, who finished sixth overall last year but whose owners have had financial troubles, missed the first test in Jerez.
Force India set their sights on breaking into Formula One's top three at the launch of their new car on Wednesday and hit back at suggestions that they lack the budget to match the manufacturers in a spending 'arms race'.
Red Bull's Max Verstappen went fastest in Styrian Grand Prix practice, on Friday, while Australian Daniel Ricciardo crashed his Renault
French driver Esteban Ocon will race for Force Indianext season after agreeing a multi-year deal, the Silverstone-based Formula One team said in a statement at the Brazilian Grand Prix on Thursday. Ocon replaces experienced German Nico Hulkenberg, who is moving to Renault, alongside Mexican Sergio Perez at a team co-owned by Indian tycoon Vijay Mallya and currently fourth in the championship. The 20-year-old is contracted long-term to Mercedes, Force India's engine provider, and made his debut this year with the lowly Manor team as a mid-season replacement for Indonesian Rio Haryanto.
Sebastian Vettel trimmed Lewis Hamilton's Formula One lead to 17 points with eight races remaining.
Former world champion Kimi Raikkonen has renewed his contract with Ferrari and will race for them again next season, the Formula One team said.
Lewis Hamilton won the Mexican Grand Prix for Mercedes after a first-lap scare on Sunday but the Briton will have to wait another week to wrap up his sixth Formula One world championship. Hamilton's 10th win of the season, and 83rd of his career, was also a 100th for Mercedes as a constructor.
Hamilton has won the last three races, out of four so far in this COVID-19 affected season, and will start as favourite again.
Michael Schumacher's son Mick has followed in his father's footsteps by signing a contract with Ferrari to join the Formula One team's young driver academy. The 19-year-old German, whose father won five of his record seven championships with the Italian team, will be competing in Formula Two this year after winning the European F3 title in 2018.
Lewis Hamilton took a big step towards clinching his fifth Formula One title after putting his Mercedes on pole position at the U.S. Grand Prix on Saturday with Ferrari rival Sebastian Vettel starting fifth.
The German is 40 points adrift of Mercedes rival Lewis Hamilton with six races remaining and is running out of time to reassert himself in the battle of the four times world champions.
Mercedes won the Formula One constructors' title for the fourth year in a row on Sunday but Lewis Hamilton was made to wait despite cruising to a U.S. Grand Prix victory at one of his favourite circuits.
Lewis Hamilton's Mercedes suffered a rare mechanical failure on Friday as Formula One teams wrapped up pre-season testing in Barcelona with Ferrari back on top of the timesheets.
The Scottish broadcaster said Murray was self-isolating and still had hopes of competing in the Australian Open next month.
German Formula One driver Nico Hulkenberg will leave Force India and race for Renault in 2017 after signing a multi-year deal with the French manufacturer.
Ferrari made a strong start to the first day of Formula One testing, on Monday, with four-times world champion Sebastian Vettel top of the timesheets at lunchtime with 72 laps completed.
The win also set a record, one that Hamilton had previously shared with seven times champion Michael Schumacher, of 41 wins from pole position.
Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel won the Bahrain Grand Prix to go seven points clear at the top of the Formula One standings on Sunday, with Mercedes rival Lewis Hamilton staging a late charge to finish second.
Formula One is due to go through a major technical overhaul next season, with wider wheels and chassis, and a more aggressive look with revised aerodynamics aimed at making the cars faster and harder to drive.
Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton won the Belgian Grand Prix from pole position on Sunday to increase his lead over Mercedes team mate Nico Rosberg to 28 points with eight races remaining.
Mexican Sergio Perez scrambled free from the wreckage of a heavy crash that left his Force India upside down on the track, halting first practice for the Hungarian Formula One Grand Prix on Friday.
Triple world champion Lewis Hamilton celebrated his first win of the Formula One season in a crash-filled Monaco Grand Prix on Sunday.
Valtteri Bottas won the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on Sunday and retook the Formula One lead from team mate Lewis Hamilton after a fourth successive one-two finish for Mercedes.
Formula One's first pre-season test ended in Jerez with Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen fastest.
Monaco's Leclerc, who had started on pole position for the first time, lost power with 10 laps to go while leading and finished third with an extra point for the fastest lap.
The Renault Formula One team will be renamed Alpine F1 from 2021, competing in French colours to showcase the carmaker's sportscar brand, new company CEO Luca de Meo announced on Sunday.
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