Vettel quickest in final practice for Malaysian GP

By Luke SmithMar 23, 2013, 2:17 AM EST
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Defending world champion Sebastian Vettel looks set to be in the running for pole position for the Malaysian Grand Prix after finishing quickest in the final free practice session.

The Red Bull driver posted a time of 1:36.435, edging out a charging Lewis Hamilton at the top after the Briton led for most of the session. Also in close contention were Adrian Sutil and Mark Webber, both of whom finished within two-tenths of Vettel’s time.

Although heavy rain had been forecast, Free Practice 3 saw the track basking in hot and sunny conditions, allowing the teams to make the most of the dry track ahead of qualifying later. Most of the drivers opted to focus on their longer runs on the harder tire before switching to the medium compound later on in the session. With around five minutes to go, Vettel posted the quickest time to take P1 from Hamilton.

Red Bull and Mercedes will be very pleased with the result, as will Force India, who finished 3rd and 6th ahead of both Ferrari and McLaren. Qualifying could see a dramatic change in the running order, but with the top ten separated by less than one second, it appears the battle for pole position is wide open.

Malaysian GP – Free Practice 3 Classification

1 Sebastian Vettel Red Bull Racing-Renault 1:36.435

2 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:36.568 +0.133

3 Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercedes 1:36.588 +0.153

4 Mark Webber Red Bull Racing-Renault 1:36.613 +0.178

5 Kimi Räikkönen Lotus-Renault 1:36.806 +0.371

6 Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes 1:36.807 +0.372

7 Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 1:36.822 +0.387

8 Felipe Massa Ferrari 1:36.946 +0.511

9 Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1:36.949 +0.514

10 Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1:37.302 +0.867

11 Pastor Maldonado Williams-Renault 1:37.359 +0.924

12 Sergio Perez McLaren-Mercedes 1:37.538 +1.103

13 Nico Hulkenberg Sauber-Ferrari 1:37.685 +1.250

14 Romain Grosjean Lotus-Renault 1:37.690 +1.255

15 Valtteri Bottas Williams-Renault 1:37.936 +1.501

16 Esteban Gutierrez Sauber-Ferrari 1:38.294 +1.859

17 Jean-Eric Vergne STR-Ferrari 1:38.376 +1.941

18 Daniel Ricciardo STR-Ferrari 1:38.425 +1.990

19 Charles Pic Caterham-Renault 1:38.995 +2.560

20 Jules Bianchi Marussia-Cosworth 1:39.717 +3.282

21 Giedo van der Garde Caterham-Renault 1:40.209 +3.774

22 Max Chilton Marussia-Cosworth 1:40.495 +4.060

F1’s Valtteri Bottas to compete in first-ever rally race in his native Finland

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By Jerry BonkowskiDec 11, 2018, 6:50 PM EST
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Formula One’s “Flying Finn” is going back home for the first time.

More precisely, Valtteri Bottas is returning to his Finland homeland to compete in his first career rally race in the Finnish Rally Championship season opener.

Bottas, teammates on the F1 Mercedes team with five-time champ Lewis Hamilton, will compete in the World Rally Championships’ Arctic Lapland Rally from January 24-26.

He’ll team with two-time World Rally champion Timo Rautiainen in a M-Sport Ford Fiesta RS WRC on rally roads of the Finnish Arctic Circle.

“This is a unique opportunity to take a peek into the world of rallying,” Bottas told Finnish rallying website Rallism.f1. “I would like to thank everyone who has made it possible.

“It’s totally new territory for me too, as I have no prior experience of a World Rally Car. Still, being the race car driver that I am, you always go flat out whatever the vehicle you’re driving in.”

Added Rautiainen, “In my life, I’ve sat in a rally car with only three drivers, but this is such an interesting mission that I just had to accept the challenge. I believe that for a talented wheelman like Valtteri, we’ll be able to establish a good basic driving routine in testing.”

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