2021 Portuguese Grand Prix

The 2021 Portuguese Grand Prix (officially the Formula 1 Heineken Grande Prémio De Portugal 2021) was the third race of the 2021 FIA Formula One World Championship, staged at the Algarve International Circuit in Portimao, Algarve, Portugal between April 30 and May 2 2021.
Valtteri Bottas took pole position for the race, but it was Lewis Hamilton who won the race for the second year in a row, despite losing out to Max Verstappen after an early Safety Car restart due to Kimi Räikkönen retiring from front wing damage after clipping his team-mate Antonio Giovinazzi. He managed to repass him and eventually gain the lead on the 20th lap. A long first stint for Verstappen's team-mate Sergio Pérez meant that he took the lead after Hamilton pitted, but then conceded the lead to Hamilton after getting blocked by the of Nikita Mazepin a few laps prior, the latter receiving a post-race penalty as a result, while Hamilton went on to score his 97th race win. Bottas was passed by Verstappen after his stop and fell behind momentarily after suffering a brief exhaust sensor issue, but nevertheless, took the fastest lap award, with Verstappen's fastest lap time deleted for track limits violations. Daniel Ricciardo managed to race to 9th place after starting from 16th in .
__TOC__
==Background==
As with the previous Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix round, the Portuguese Grand Prix was originally a one-off race for the 2020 season. Following the omission of the Vietnamese Grand Prix from the original 2021 calendar, due to corruption charges on a key race official, the slot has since been left as a TBC. Speculations grew with the Portuguese Grand Prix being one of the favorites to take the spot. On March 5, it was confirmed that the Portuguese Grand Prix would take up the TBC slot on the calendar.
Heading into the weekend Lewis Hamilton held a one-point lead ahead of Max Verstappen, who won the previous round but Hamilton's fastest lap ensured he still had the championship lead entering the next round.
On the day of the previous round it was also announced that the Miami Grand Prix is confirmed to be the latest addition to F1 starting the next season, with a new 10-year deal signed. The race will take place at the Hard Rock Stadium, which is home to the Miami Dolphins baseball team and has hosted the Super Bowl six times and numerous music concerts.F1.com: Miami Grand Prix to join F1 calendar in 2022, with exciting new circuit planned
On the Monday before the race weekend, all teams have unanimously agreed to trial a sprint race qualifying format. The format for sprint qualifying will be as follows:F1.com: Sprint Qualifying to debut at three Grands Prix in 2021 following unanimous agreement from teams
* Friday: A one-hour free practice session with two sets of tires for teams to choose freely, and the Qualifying session with five soft tire sets available only.
* Saturday: A one-hour practice session with one set of tires for teams to choose freely, and a 100 km (60 mi) sprint race (one-third of Grand Prix distance) with two sets of tires to choose freely. Points are awarded to the Top 3 with a 3-2-1 scoring basis with pit stops not compulsory.
* Sunday: Full-distance race with two remaining sets of tires.
It was immediately announced that the Silverstone Circuit will be the first location to trial the new sprint weekend formatSilverstone Circuit: SILVERSTONE HOST FIRST SPRINT QUALIFYING AT THE 2021 FORMULA 1 BRITISH GRAND PRIX.
===Entry List===
The full entry list for the is outlined below:
No. 	Driver 	Entrant 	Constructor 	Chassis 	Engine 	Model 	Tyre
3 	Daniel Ricciardo 	McLaren F1 Team 	 	MCL35M 	 	M12 1.6 V6t 	
4 	Lando Norris 	McLaren F1 Team 	 	MCL35M 	 	M12 1.6 V6t 	
5 	Sebastian Vettel 	Aston Martin Cognizant F1 Team 	 	AMR21 	 	M12 1.6 V6t 	
6 	Nicholas Latifi 	Williams Racing 	 	FW43B 	 	M12 1.6 V6t 	
7 	Kimi Räikkönen 	Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN 	 	C41 	 	065/6 1.6 V6t 	
9 	Nikita Mazepin 	Uralkali Haas F1 Team 	 	VF-21 	 	065/6 1.6 V6t 	
10 	Pierre Gasly 	Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda 	 	AT02 	 	RA621H 1.6 V6t 	
11 	Sergio Pérez 	Red Bull Racing 	 	RB16B 	 	RA621H 1.6 V6t 	
14 	Fernando Alonso 	Alpine F1 Team 	 	A521 	 	E-Tech 21 1.6 V6t 	
16 	Charles Leclerc 	Scuderia Ferrari 	 	SF21 	 	065/6 1.6 V6t 	
18 	Lance Stroll 	Aston Martin Cognizant F1 Team 	 	AMR21 	 	M12 1.6 V6t 	
22 	Yuki Tsunoda 	Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda 	 	AT02 	 	RA621H 1.6 V6t 	
31 	Esteban Ocon 	Alpine F1 Team 	 	A521 	 	E-Tech 21 1.6 V6t 	
33 	Max Verstappen 	Red Bull Racing 	 	RB16B 	 	RA621H 1.6 V6t 	
44 	Lewis Hamilton 	Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team 	 	F1 W12 	 	M12 1.6 V6t 	
47 	Mick Schumacher 	Uralkali Haas F1 Team 	 	VF-21 	 	065/6 1.6 V6t 	
55 	Carlos Sainz, Jr. 	Scuderia Ferrari 	 	SF21 	 	065/6 1.6 V6t 	
63 	George Russell 	Williams Racing 	 	FW43B 	 	M12 1.6 V6t 	
77 	Valtteri Bottas 	Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team 	 	F1 W12 	 	M12 1.6 V6t 	
99 	Antonio Giovinazzi 	Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN 	 	C41 	 	065/6 1.6 V6t 	
Test Drivers for Practice Sessions Only 	Test Drivers for Practice Sessions Only 	Test Drivers for Practice Sessions Only 	Test Drivers for Practice Sessions Only 	Test Drivers for Practice Sessions Only 	Test Drivers for Practice Sessions Only 	Test Drivers for Practice Sessions Only 	Test Drivers for Practice Sessions Only
98 	Callum Ilott 	Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN 	 	C41 	 	065/6 1.6 V6t 	
Source: - Entry List (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.	Source: - Entry List (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.	Source: - Entry List (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.	Source: - Entry List (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.	Source: - Entry List (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.	Source: - Entry List (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.	Source: - Entry List (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.	Source: - Entry List (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.
==Practice Overview==
The full practice results for the are outlined below:
No. 	Driver 	Team 	FP1 	FP1 	FP2 	FP2 	FP3 	FP3
No. 	Driver 	Team 	Time 	Pos 	Time 	Pos 	Time 	Pos
3 	Daniel Ricciardo 	 	1:20.995 	12 	1:20.418 	8 	1:19.582 	12
4 	Lando Norris 	 	1:20.635 	8 	1:20.757 	12 	1:19.272 	8
5 	Sebastian Vettel 	 	1:21.405 	16 	1:21.074 	15 	1:20.214 	18
6 	Nicholas Latifi 	 	1:22.293 	19 	1:21.855 	19 	1:20.681 	19
7 	Kimi Räikkönen 	 	1:21.381 	15 	1:21.225 	16 	1:19.415 	10
9 	Nikita Mazepin 	 	1:24.224 	20 	1:22.638 	20 	1:20.690 	20
10 	Pierre Gasly 	 	1:20.444 	6 	1:20.558 	11 	1:19.374 	9
11 	
 Sergio Pérez 	 	1:19.846 	3 	1:20.516 	10 	1:18.840 	4
14 	Fernando Alonso 	 	1:21.303 	14 	1:20.220 	5 	1:19.949 	14
16 	Charles Leclerc 	 	1:19.884 	4 	1:20.360 	7 	1:19.001 	6
18 	Lance Stroll 	 	1:20.894 	11 	1:20.427 	9 	1:20.090 	16
22 	Yuki Tsunoda 	 	1:21.090 	13 	1:21.053 	14 	1:19.485 	11
31 	Esteban Ocon 	 	1:20.800 	10 	1:20.235 	6 	1:18.860 	5
33 	
 Max Verstappen 	 	1:19.673 	2 	1:19.980 	2 	1:18.489 	1
44 	Lewis Hamilton 	 	1:19.967 	5 	1:19.837 	1 	1:18.725 	2
47 	Mick Schumacher 	 	1:21.939 	18 	1:21.537 	18 	1:20.033 	15
55 	Carlos Sainz, Jr. 	 	1:20.680 	9 	1:20.197 	4 	1:19.050 	7
63 	
 George Russell 	 	1:20.529 	7 	1:20.976 	13 	1:20.127 	17
77 	Valtteri Bottas 	 	1:19.648 	1 	1:20.181 	3 	1:18.820 	3
98 	Callum Ilott 	 	1:21.806 	17 	 	 	 	
99 	Antonio Giovinazzi 	 	 	 	1:21.238 	17 	1:19.588 	13
Source: %20-%20P1%20Classification.pdf - FP1 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P2%20Classification.pdf - FP2 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P3%20Classification.pdf - FP3 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.	Source: %20-%20P1%20Classification.pdf - FP1 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P2%20Classification.pdf - FP2 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P3%20Classification.pdf - FP3 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.	Source: %20-%20P1%20Classification.pdf - FP1 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P2%20Classification.pdf - FP2 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P3%20Classification.pdf - FP3 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.	Source: %20-%20P1%20Classification.pdf - FP1 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P2%20Classification.pdf - FP2 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P3%20Classification.pdf - FP3 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.	Source: %20-%20P1%20Classification.pdf - FP1 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P2%20Classification.pdf - FP2 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P3%20Classification.pdf - FP3 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.	Source: %20-%20P1%20Classification.pdf - FP1 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P2%20Classification.pdf - FP2 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P3%20Classification.pdf - FP3 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.	Source: %20-%20P1%20Classification.pdf - FP1 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P2%20Classification.pdf - FP2 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P3%20Classification.pdf - FP3 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.	Source: %20-%20P1%20Classification.pdf - FP1 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P2%20Classification.pdf - FP2 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P3%20Classification.pdf - FP3 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.	Source: %20-%20P1%20Classification.pdf - FP1 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P2%20Classification.pdf - FP2 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.%20-%20P3%20Classification.pdf - FP3 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.
==Qualifying==
===Q1===
The biggest shocker in qualifying was Ricciardo. He alongside Stroll, Latifi, Schumacher and Mazepin were out of Q1, the first time since the 2019 Japanese Grand Prix that he was eliminated in that period.
===Q2===
Russell nearly made it to Q3 by five hundredths of a second. He was out alongside Giovinazzi, Alonso, Tsunoda and Raikkonen. Vettel progressed to Q3 for the first time since the 2020 British Grand Prix.
===Q3===
Verstappen initially set the quickest time for pole, but was deleted for track limits violations. Valtteri Bottas thus took his 17th career pole by seven thousandths of a second ahead of Hamilton, despite both not improving their runs on medium tires.
===Qualifying Results===
The full qualifying results for the are outlined below:
Pos. 	No. 	Driver 	Team 	 	Q1 	Q1 	 	Q2 	Q2 	 	
Q3 	
Q3 	Grid
Pos. 	No. 	Driver 	Team 	 	Pos. 	Time 	 	Pos. 	Time 	 	Pos. 	Time 	Grid
1 	77 	Valtteri Bottas 	 	 	1 	1:18.722 	 	2 	1:18.458 	 	1 	1:18.348 	1
2 	44 	Lewis Hamilton 	 	 	3 	1:18.857 	 	1 	1:17.968 	 	2 	1:18.355 	2
3 	33 	Max Verstappen 	 	 	11 	1:19.485 	 	5 	1:18.650 	 	3 	1:18.746 	3
4 	11 	Sergio Pérez 	 	 	6 	1:19.337 	 	8 	1:18.845 	 	4 	1:18.890 	4
5 	55 	Carlos Sainz, Jr. 	 	 	5 	1:19.309 	 	7 	1:18.813 	 	5 	1:19.039 	5
6 	31 	Esteban Ocon 	 	 	4 	1:19.092 	 	4 	1:18.586 	 	6 	1:19.042 	6
7 	4 	Lando Norris 	 	 	2 	1:18.794 	 	3 	1:18.481 	 	7 	1:19.116 	7
8 	16 	Charles Leclerc 	 	 	7 	1:19.373 	 	6 	1:18.769 	 	8 	1:19.306 	8
9 	10 	Pierre Gasly 	 	 	10 	1:19.464 	 	10 	1:19.052 	 	9 	1:19.475 	9
10 	5 	Sebastian Vettel 	 	 	8 	1:19.403 	 	9 	1:18.970 	 	10 	1:19.659 	10
11 	63 	George Russell 	 	 	15 	1:19.797 	 	11 	1:19.109 	 	 	 	11
12 	99 	Antonio Giovinazzi 	 	 	9 	1:19.410 	 	12 	1:19.216 	 	 	 	12
13 	14 	Fernando Alonso 	 	 	13 	1:19.728 	 	13 	1:19.456 	 	 	 	13
14 	22 	Yuki Tsunoda 	 	 	12 	1:19.684 	 	14 	1:19.463 	 	 	 	14
15 	7 	Kimi Räikkönen 	 	 	14 	1:19.748 	 	15 	1:19.812 	 	 	 	15
16 	3 	Daniel Ricciardo 	 	 	16 	1:19.839 	 	 	 	 	 	 	16
17 	18 	Lance Stroll 	 	 	17 	1:19.913 	 	 	 	 	 	 	17
18 	6 	Nicholas Latifi 	 	 	18 	1:20.285 	 	 	 	 	 	 	18
19 	47 	Mick Schumacher 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
20 	9 	Nikita Mazepin 	 	 	20 	1:20.912 	 	 	 	 	 	 	20
107% time: 1:24.232 	107% time: 1:24.232 	107% time: 1:24.232 	107% time: 1:24.232 	107% time: 1:24.232 	107% time: 1:24.232 	107% time: 1:24.232 	107% time: 1:24.232 	107% time: 1:24.232 	107% time: 1:24.232 	107% time: 1:24.232 	107% time: 1:24.232 	107% time: 1:24.232 	107% time: 1:24.232
Source:' ', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2020), , (Accessed 05/07/2020)	Source:' ', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2020), , (Accessed 05/07/2020)	Source:' ', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2020), , (Accessed 05/07/2020)	Source:' ', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2020), , (Accessed 05/07/2020)	Source:' ', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2020), , (Accessed 05/07/2020)	Source:' ', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2020), , (Accessed 05/07/2020)	Source:' ', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2020), , (Accessed 05/07/2020)	Source:' ', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2020), , (Accessed 05/07/2020)	Source:' ', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2020), , (Accessed 05/07/2020)	Source:' ', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2020), , (Accessed 05/07/2020)	Source:' ', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2020), , (Accessed 05/07/2020)	Source:' ', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2020), , (Accessed 05/07/2020)	Source:' ', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2020), , (Accessed 05/07/2020)	Source:' ', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2020), , (Accessed 05/07/2020)
*Bold indicates the fastest driver's time in each session.
===Grid===
The starting grid of the feature race of the is outined below:
Show Grid
==Race==
===Report===
===Results===
The full results for the are outlined below:
Pos. 	No. 	Driver 	Constructor	Laps 	Time/Retired 	Grid 	Points
1 	44 	Lewis Hamilton 	 	66 	1:34:31.421 	2 	25
2 	33 	Max Verstappen 	 	66 	+29.148 	3 	18
3 	77 	Valtteri Bottas 	 	66 	+33.530 	1 	16FL
4 	11 	Sergio Pérez 	 	66 	+39.735 	4 	12
5 	4 	Lando Norris 	 	66 	+51.369 	7 	10
6 	16 	Charles Leclerc 	 	66 	+55.781 	8 	8
7 	31 	Esteban Ocon 	 	66 	+1:03.749 	6 	6
8 	14 	Fernando Alonso 	 	66 	+1:04.808 	13 	4
9 	3 	Daniel Ricciardo 	 	66 	+1:15.369 	16 	2
10 	10 	Pierre Gasly 	 	66 	+1:16.463 	9 	1
11 	55 	Carlos Sainz, Jr. 	 	66 	+1:18.955 	5 	
12 	99 	Antonio Giovinazzi	 	65 	+1 lap 	12 	
13 	5 	Sebastian Vettel 	 	65 	+1 lap 	10 	
14 	18 	Lance Stroll 	 	65 	+1 lap 	17 	
15 	22 	Yuki Tsunoda 	 	65 	+1 lap 	14 	
16 	63 	George Russell 	 	65 	+1 lap 	11 	
17 	47 	Mick Schumacher 	 	64 	+2 laps 	19 	
18 	6 	Nicholas Latifi 	 	64 	+2 laps 	18 	
19* 	9 	Nikita Mazepin 	 	64 	+2 laps 	20 	
Ret 	7 	Kimi Räikkönen 	 	1 	Collision damage	15 	
Source:	Source:	Source: 	Source: 	Source:	Source: 	Source:	Source:
 
** Mazepin received a post-race 5-second time penalty for ignoring blue flags and impeding Pérez.
==Milestones== 
*500th race start for -powered cars.
*17th career Pole Position for Valtteri Bottas, equaling Jackie Stewart's record.
*Mercedes' 128th pole position, equaling Williams' record.
**This is also Mercedes' 71st front row lockout.
*97th race win for Lewis Hamilton.
*Hamilton, Bottas and Verstappen set a new record for the most recurring podium drivers at 15.
==Standings==
Hamilton extended his championship lead ahead of Verstappen to 8 points after the race, leading the drivers' championship standings for the 123rd race, whilst their team-mates' points finishing ensured they moved up the order of the drivers standings. Both Alpine drivers were able to depose Tsunoda to the bottom among the points scorers, and also move up to 5th in the constructors' standings.
Drivers' World Championship	Drivers' World Championship	Drivers' World Championship	Drivers' World Championship
Pos. 	Driver 	Pts 	+/-
1 	Lewis Hamilton 	69 	
2 	Max Verstappen 	61 	
3 	Lando Norris 	37 	
4 	Valtteri Bottas 	32 	1
5 	Charles Leclerc 	28 	1
6 	Sergio Pérez 	22 	2
7 	Daniel Ricciardo 	16 	
8 	Carlos Sainz, Jr. 	14 	2
9 	Esteban Ocon 	8 	3
10 	Pierre Gasly 	7 	1
11 	Lance Stroll 	5 	1
12 	Fernando Alonso 	5 	1
13 	Yuki Tsunoda 	2 	2
Constructors' World Championship	Constructors' World Championship	Constructors' World Championship	Constructors' World Championship
Pos. 	Team 	Pts 	+/-
1 	 	101 	
2 	 	83 	
3 	 	53 	
4 	 	42 	
5 	 	13 	2
6 	 	9 	1
7 	 	5 	1
Only point scoring drivers and constructors are shown.
==References==
Images and Videos:
*
References:
Category:Grand Prix articles
Category:Portuguese Grand Prix
Category:2021 Formula One Season
Category:2021 Grands Prix