Formula 1 in the ticker: Vettel embarrassment after gully chaos at action-packed Portimao premiere

Formula 1 is going to Portimao for the first time.

The track is uncharted territory for all teams - it could be a wild weekend.

The live ticker.

• The

  Portuguese Grand Prix

  is a first in

  Formula 1 *

  .

  F1 has

  never been a

  guest

  in Portimao

  .

• Sebastian Vettel

  only came in 15th in qualifying.

  Mercedes also

  dominated the new track.

• We accompany

  training

  ,

  qualifying

  and

  races

  here in the

  live ticker

  .

>>> UPDATE <<<

Formula 1 in the live ticker: Starting grid in Portimao - Vettel only in 15th place

Update from October 24th, 4:45 p.m.:

clearly missed

the top ten

for the Portuguese Grand Prix

on his Formula 1 debut in

.

The four-time world champion did not get past

on Saturday on the almost 4.7 kilometer long course

.

This was the ninth time he did not make it into the final knockout round in his Ferrari in the twelfth race of the year.

"I didn't bring the front tires up to temperature, they weren't ready," he radioed the pits.

His team-mate

, however, came fourth.

“At the moment I don't see any country, it's like a different class.

I'm trying to make the rounds, that's all I have left over, ”said Vettel about the duel with the Monegasque.

ELIMINATED: Q2

Ocon

Stroll

Kvyat

Russell

Vettel # PortugueseGP 🇵🇹 # F1 pic.twitter.com/5DnlUgZVun

- Formula 1 (@ F1) October 24, 2020

is once again on the front row

.

grabbed

pole position just before the end.

Red Bull driver

the race

in third place

.

If Hamilton wins the race on Sunday (2.10 p.m. / RTL and Sky), he is the sole record holder with 92 wins ahead of

.

Update from October 24th, 2:31 pm:

Mercedes in front of Red Bull, Valtteri Bottas in front of Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen: The third free practice session for the

on Sunday in Portimao (from 14.10 / so you can see the race live *) offered the well-known balance of power.

And Sebastian Vettel?

He missed the top ten and ended up in eleventh place.

Formula 1 in Portimao: racing circus celebrates its premiere - and compares the course with an action film

Two minutes before the end of training, the session was canceled with the red flag and no longer started.

The Heppenheimer had

driven

over a

grate

in the ground on the exit of curve 14

, which then stood up and thus represented a danger for the drivers.

According to initial findings, the Ferrari car was not damaged in the incident.

Here is a recording of the scene:

Another eventful practice session in Portimao 😮 # PortugueseGP 🇵🇹 # F1

- Formula 1 (@ F1) October 24, 2020

World champion Hamilton had already

pointed out

in the Algarve

after the first day of training

.

"When exiting turn eight you look up into the sky for a while and have no idea what is behind the hilltop," said the Briton: "You drive into turn eleven and don't even know where you are." McLaren driver Carlos Sainz (Spain) even felt like he was in the action-packed film series "The Fast and the Furious".

“It's like Tokyo Drift here”, Sainz radioed into his pits (see below).

F1 - Portuguese GP: Flames in training - action prelude before Portimao premiere

Update from October 23, 5:57 p.m.: High

activity on the track, many on drifting course, a car blazing in flames and a returnee helpless in the gravel bed: Even at the start of the Grand Prix premiere in Portimão,

high

in the

.

The drivers struggled with the pitfalls of the still slippery roller coaster track.

Hardly anyone made it through the laps on Friday without a spin

,

set

the

the day

in the second free practice session in the afternoon, when the World Cup second was more than half a second faster than World Cup third

in 1: 17.940 minutes

.

Lewis Hamilton

, world championship leader and six-time champion, who with a win on Sunday (2.10 p.m. / Sky and RTL) can become the sole record holder with the most Grand Prix successes - it would be 92 - came in second behind Bottas in the Lunch training not beyond eighth place.

Sebastian Vettel improved his Ferrari from eleventh in first to sixth in second free practice in front of a few thousand spectators - a maximum of 27,500 are allowed on the three days at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve.

Those who were already there got a lot on offer.

The one and a half hour session had to be interrupted twice for some time: On

of

suddenly hit fierce

from the rear.

The Frenchman jumped out of the car and called the marshals to put out the fire.

The car was no longer drivable and had to be attached to the tow hook.

🚩 RED FLAG 🚩

Fire and smoke pour out of the rear of Pierre Gasly's car 🔥

The session is halted ❌ # PortugueseGP 🇵🇹 # F1 pic.twitter.com/iN3iGR8Gy0

- Formula 1 (@ F1) October 23, 2020

Formula 1: Hardly any driver without problems on the new course

Without problems - even if not as serious - hardly anyone got through the three sunny hours of training on the almost 4.7-kilometer course.

McLaren driver Carlos Sainz Junior radioed into his pits: “That's unbelievable.” Team mate Lando Norris even sang an ode to the track that was only added to the emergency calendar due to the corona pandemic.

“It goes up and down, from one side to the other, like on a roller coaster,” intoned the Briton in his car.

All teams and all drivers had only one thing in mind at the start: Drive as much as possible.

Not because two weeks ago when returning to the

on Friday it was not possible to drive due to the weather, but to get as much data as possible for the coordination of the cars for the race on Sunday (2.10 p.m. / RTL and Sky).

Pretty much every pilot covered far more than one race distance in practice on Friday.

was there again

after his positive

almost two weeks

.

In the cool and rough Eifel, the Canadian from Racing Point had stopped due to stomach problems, in the south of Portugal he was allowed to drive again after negative corona tests.

After a rather superfluous crash with the cursing Verstappen - “What the hell is wrong with him ?!” - Stroll's training day ended prematurely.

The afternoon session had to be stopped for the second time and the Racing Point had to be pushed out of the gravel.

First report from October 23, 2020, 9.38 a.m.:

Portimao - The unusual Formula 1 season 2020 * has reached a new high point: a route that has never been driven.

The course in

was only built in 2008 and added to the emergency calendar this year.

Drivers and teams have no experience, no data and no comparative values ​​- for that reason alone, the Portuguese Grand Prix promises a lot of excitement.

Of course

applies

Still as a favorite - but the remaining teams have a great chance of getting to the industry leader through good work.

Above all

, which is already on the

were able to close the gap to Mercedes a little.

Mercedes stopped all developments on the car last week, while Red Bull is busy developing.

Formula 1 in the live ticker: Sebastian Vettel wants to "prove what I can do" again

The

Portugal race is also a chance

for

to be forgiving of

to adopt.

The Heppenheimer is currently in the

only in

- that is neither worthy of a four-time world champion nor a top team.

"Roller coaster vibe" 👌

The drivers can't wait to get started at Portimao - and they gave some rave reviews of the circuit on Thursday 🤩 # PortugueseGP 🇵🇹 # F1 pic.twitter.com/k0jmvrNuC4

- Formula 1 (@ F1) October 22, 2020

Is Vettel just ending the season?

No, as he himself emphasizes.

He made another announcement for the last six races.

"At the end of the year I would like to prove what I can do again," said the German.

He also

wants to show it to

his teammate

again.

The Monegasse was ahead of the game for most of the season.

Vettel looked back surprisingly self-critical.

Formula 1 in the live ticker: Sebastian Vettel makes an honest confession - "Not always given everything"

“The Ferrari is difficult to drive this season, Charles and I both see it that way.

But Charles always got the very best out of the car, but I didn't always show what I can, "admitted Vettel.

At Ferrari, a “love story” ends for him - even if it didn't always look like that.

provided momentum in the driver carousel

this week with the dismissal of both drivers.

There is much speculation about their successors, the Germans

and

are among the hottest candidates for a cockpit at the American racing team.

(epp)

List of rubric lists: © Jose Sena Goulao / EPA Pool / AP / dpa