The Finn was almost two tenths of a second faster than the world champion in Russia. World Cup leader Verstappen is third.
Last year's winner Valtteri Bottas set the fastest time in the first Formula 1 practice session in Sochi on Friday. Before the Russian Grand Prix, the Finn in his Mercedes was a good two tenths of a second faster than his teammate Lewis Hamilton in 1: 34.427 minutes. Behind the world champion, the Dutch World Cup leader Max Verstappen came third in the Red Bull. The title rivals were separated by just 0.016 seconds.
Mercedes is the favorite in the Olympic city of 2014 on Sunday (2 p.m. / live ORF 1 and Sky), since the premiere on the Black Sea, the racing team has been the winner in all World Cup races and a total of seven times. Eight Grand Prix before the end of the season, Verstappen is five points ahead of Hamilton in the overall standings, with Bottas third.
Mercedes are looking strong again in Sochi 🏋️ # RussianGP # F1 pic.twitter.com/PSFv1WS6UK
– Formula 1 (@ F1) September 24, 2021
