Turkish Grand Prix LIVE: F1 result as Valtteri Bottas beats Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen to victory

Follow all the action from the Turkish Grand Prix as Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen resume their razor-tight race for the world championship.

An increasingly acrimonious rivalry between the pair sees Hamilton lead the standings by just two points, but he will have to come from behind to maintain that advantage this afternoon. The seven-time world champion was handed a 10-place grid penalty after Mercedes replaced his Internal Combustion Engine for a fourth time this season, one more change than is permitted under Formula One regulations. It means that Hamilton will start from eleventh on the grid, having been the quickest in qualifying. His Mercedes teammate, Valtteri Bottas, inherited pole position having finished 0.13 seconds behind the Briton. Verstappen will start in second on the grid with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc third.

Despite his superior speed, Hamilton was wary in his analysis of his chances. “Tomorrow will be difficult but I will give it everything,” he said. “It is not the easiest overtaking at the moment and we are all on the same tyres.” Meanwhile, Verstappen said he was “pretty happy” with the Red Bull’s performance in qualifying, despite admitting they did not have the pace to compete with Mercedes in Istanbul. Follow latest updates from the race below:

Turkish Grand Prix

• Valtteri Bottas wins the Turkish Grand Prix

• Red Bull round-out the podium with Verstappen ahead of Perez

• Hamilton finishes fifth furious with team’s strategy call

• Verstappen leads championship by six points.

Bottas delighted with one of "best ever” races

14:42 , Dan Austin

Valtteri Bottas has been talking to David Coulthard about being back on the top step podium for the first time in a long while.

“One of the best races I’ve had ever,” The Finn declared. “Everything was under control, and I had confidence with the car in every condition. It’s not easy to choose the strategy here but I’m glad everything went smoothly for me for once.

“When there’s only one drying line it doesn’t take much to go off, so I needed to focus.”

Full race results

14:39 , Dan Austin

1. Bottas

2. Verstappen

3. Perez

4. Leclerc

5. Hamilton

6. Gasly

7. Norris

8. Sainz

9. Stroll

10. Ocon

11. Giovinazzi

12. Raikkonen

13. Ricciardo

14. Tsunoda

15. Russell

16. Alonso

17. Latifi

18. Vettel

19. Schumacher

20. Mazepin

Max Verstappen leads Drivers’ Championship

14:36 , Dan Austin

That result means that Max Verstappen has re-taken the lead of the Drivers’ Championship by six points with seven races left to go.

Valtteri Bottas wins in Turkey!

14:35 , Dan Austin

Valtteri Bottas has won the Turkish Grand Prix for Mercedes!

Max Verstappen comes home in second-place, with the impressive Sergio Perez in third.

Charles Leclerc is fourth and Lewis Hamilton holds onto fifth.

Bottas takes fastest lap

14:33 , Dan Austin

LAP 57/58

Valtteri Bottas remains out-front with a solid gap of over 10 seconds to Max Verstappen, and has just taken the fastest lap to earn himself an extra point too.

The Finn has put in a stellar performance this afternoon.

Norris catches Hamilton and Gasly

14:31 , Dan Austin

LAP 56/58

Hamilton is dreadfully slow on his new intermediate tyres right now and Lando Norris is right behind Pierre Gasly in the chasing pack.

The championship leader could lose a couple of places in the final two laps, and needs to defend hard.

Hamilton furious as Gasly closes in

14:29 , Dan Austin

LAP 54/58

Hamilton is on the radio to ask which position he is currently in and is livid to learn that he is now higher than fifth.

“We shouldn’t have come in, man,” he bellows. “I’ve got massive graining. I told you!”

Pierre Gasly is around two seconds per lap faster right now, and seems set to steal a position from Hamilton.

Perez passes Leclerc

14:26 , Dan Austin

LAP 52/58

Sergio Perez is fighting Leclerc meanwhile and the Mexican outs together a brilliant final few corners to get the move down in the third sector.

Perez has driven extremely well this afternoon, and Hamilton is now setting his sights on Leclerc’s fourth position.

Hamilton in the pits

14:23 , Dan Austin

LAP 51/58

Mercedes have overruled Lewis Hamilton now and he’s in for a new set of intermediate tyres. That puts him down to fifth, with a very small gap to Pierre Gasly behind.

Leclerc hunting down Hamilton

14:22 , Dan Austin

LAP 50/58

Charles Leclerc is now 10 seconds behind Hamilton after his stop, but is faster by over a second per lap on his new tyres already.

Mercedes ask Hamilton whether he would like to stop but the world champion responds: “I’m sliding around but it’s ok!”

Leclerc finally in the pits

14:18 , Dan Austin

LAP 48/58

Ferrari’s tyre gamble hasn’t paid off and Leclerc is called into the pits for the second set of intermediates he had so long refused.

That brings the Monegasque driver out in fourth, behind Hamilton, who remains on his original set of tyres.

Bottas takes the lead!

14:17 , Dan Austin

LAP 47/58

Valtteri Bottas re-takes the lead of the Turkish Grand Prix with a calm slide down the inside into the turn 1 with Leclerc struggling heavily on his worn intermediates.

The Finn is in an extremely strong position to win the race now.

Leclerc makes error in the lead

14:14 , Dan Austin

LAP 45/58

Leclerc now overshoots his braking into one of the corners in the final sector, and Bottas gains four seconds to close right up on to the gearbox of the Ferrari.

The Finn needs to choose the right moment to try and make the move in treacherous conditions like this.

Hamilton thinking of dry tyres

14:13 , Dan Austin

LAP 44/58

Hamilton is now on the radio to say “it’s not far off dries”.

The seven-time world champion seems to be gambling that waiting for a dry enough track is the way to go. Leclerc and Esteban Ocon are the other drivers who have yet to stop.

Hamilton defies Mercedes

14:10 , Dan Austin

LAP 42/58

Hamilton is told to “box, box” but refuses to enter the pits.

Race engineer Peter Bonnington insists that “a new set of inters is the way to go”, but Hamilton stays out on track for now at least.

Ferrari aiming for the end with Leclerc

14:08 , Dan Austin

LAP 41/58

“Yes you can stay with this set until the end” declares Charles Leclerc’s race engineer over the radio!

Ferrari really are going to try to go all the way to the end and win the race.

Leclerc yet to pit and leading race

14:06 , Dan Austin

LAP 40/58

Charles Leclerc currently leads the race in his Ferrari with a six second gap to Valtteri Bottas.

Leclerc is on the radio to ask if he can go all the way to the end without making a pitstop, and Hamilton could well try the same strategy.

Perez pits, releasing Hamilton

14:05 , Dan Austin

LAP 39/58

Sergio Perez is in the pits for a new set of intermediates, while Lewis Hamilton stays out and seems happy to stick with his worn set for now. He is a second per lap faster than Verstappen at the moment.

Vettel, meanwhile, pits again for intermediates after accepting his slicks experiment was a total failure.

Vettel out on dry tyres

14:03 , Dan Austin

LAP 38/58

Sebastian Vettel pits for Aston Martin and takes a set of dry medium tyres!

That’s an enormous risk and Vettel is struggling to keep the car on the road. He’s much, much slower than all other cars.

Flurry of action in the pits including Bottas

14:02 , Dan Austin

LAP 37/58

The likes of Lando Norris, Carlos Sainz and Valtteri Bottas are in the pits now too as most teams decide the time is right to go for a new set of intermediates.

Verstappen pits from second

14:01 , Dan Austin

LAP 37/58

Max Verstappen pits from second place for the first time this afternoon.

It’s a brilliant stop from the Red Bull mechanics and a new set of intermediate tyres for the Dutchman.

Perez defends superbly from Hamilton

13:59 , Dan Austin

LAP 35/58

Lewis Hamilton and Sergio Perez are fighting wheel-to-wheel for four corners at the end of the lap and the Mexican driver puts up a stunning defence into turn 1 to maintain fourth place.

It looked as though Hamilton had more traction and pace out of the final corner to get the move done but the Red Bull driver does a magnificent job to hold the Mercedes man off.

That was a wonderful bit of battling from both drivers.

Bottas dropping Verstappen

13:53 , Dan Austin

LAP 32/58

Valtteri Bottas is dropping Max Verstappen now, with the Finn extending his lead from 2.2s to 4.5s in a matter of laps.

Behind them, Hamilton is now within just over a second of Sergio Perez who remains fourth.

Mazepin blocks Hamilton

13:50 , Dan Austin

LAP 30/58

Nikita Mazepin is shown blue flags as Lewis Hamilton approaches to lap him, but the Russian driver refuses to cede ground and blocks the Mercedes driver over the crest of turn 11 in a dangerous way.

The Haas man has demonstrated a consistent level of incompetence throughout the season and Hamilton is livid with him, having easily lost over a second in that moment.

Vettel expecting dry tyres

13:49 , Dan Austin

LAP 29/58

Sebastian Vettel has been on the Aston Martin team radio saying that he expected dry tyres to be necessary before the end of the race.

Anything could still happen here as the drivers try to pick their moment perfectly.

Bottas given reassurance over tyres

13:47 , Dan Austin

LAP 28/58

Race leader Valtteri Bottas has been assures by his race engineer Riccardo Musconi that his “pace is still very good, we’re going long.”

Bottas responds by saying he feels comfortable right now, saying: “These tyres are like slicks now, they’re good.”

Leclerc fastest man on track

13:43 , Dan Austin

LAP 25/58

Charles Leclerc has set a new fastest lap from third place in his Ferrari as he closes the gap to Max Verstappen to less than two seconds.

Sergio Perez is also getting quicker and maintaining a gap of three seconds to Hamilton behind.

Ricciardo slower on new tyres

13:42 , Dan Austin

LAP 24/58

The Ricciardo experiment doesn’t seem to have worked for McLaren, with the Australian now lapping slower on new intermediate tyres than he was on his previous set.

Ferrari are on the radio to Charles Leclerc to tell him that new tyres aren’t necessary right now.

Tsunoda off the track at turn 1

13:40 , Dan Austin

LAP 23/58

Yuki Tsunoda suffers a snap of oversteer on the inside line at turn 1, over-corrects, and ends up with his car facing the wrong way on the run-off area.

That moves the Alpha Tauri man down to 13th, losing out to Vettel, Ocon, Giovinazzi and Raikkonen.

Ricciardo is first driver to pit

13:39 , Dan Austin

LAP 22/58

Daniel Ricciardo is the first driver to pit, taking a new set of intermediate tyres.

McLaren clearly aren’t confident that the circuit will dry out, and with the Australian pitting from a lowly 16th, they have very little to lose.

Sainz makes tenth overtake

13:34 , Dan Austin

LAP 19/58

Carlos Sainz is driving a superb race so far and has now moved up to ninth having started 19th thanks to a lovely overtake on Yuki Tsunoda over the crest after turn 11.

The former McLaren man is now chasing down Lance Stroll and Lando Norris and is showing extremely strong pace.

Verstappen and Bottas picking up the pace

13:32 , Dan Austin

LAP 18/58

Both Max Verstappen and Valtteri Bottas are setting purple sector times now having been told by their engineers that they are managing tyres well and can push on.

Both will be aware of Hamilton’s progress and are putting the hammer down to maintain the gap.

Leclerc gaining on leaders

13:31 , Dan Austin

LAP 16/58

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc is driving an impressively understated race so far in Istanbul and is actually closing on Bottas and Verstappen ahead now.

The Monégasque driver has a strong gap to Sergio Perez behind, and is within less than three seconds of those ahead.

Hamilton into the top five

13:28 , Dan Austin

LAP 15/58

Hamilton makes mincemeat of Gasly on his way through the pack and is now into fifth place.

This is an excellent performance so far from the seven-time world champion, who has picked his moments perfectly and is hunting down the leaders at speed.

Sainz and Vettel make contact

13:27 , Dan Austin

LAP 14/58

Sebastian Vettel has been hit by his Ferrari replacement Carlos Sainz in the final sector, as the Spaniard lost control while trying a move down the inside.

Neither car looks seriously damaged and Sainz has barged his way through to tenth,

Hamilton much faster than all other drivers

13:25 , Dan Austin

LAP 13/58

Lewis Hamilton’s pace is sensational at the moment, and he is lapping at least half a second faster than every other man out on track right now.

The gap to Gasly in fifth is now only just over a second.

Hamilton flying as he passes Norris

13:22 , Dan Austin

LAP 11/58

Hamilton is flying here, picking off his rivals one-by-one and Lando Norris is small fry for the championship leader.

That puts the number 44 car sixth, with a gap of four seconds to Pierre Gasly ahead, and 18 seconds to Valtteri Bottas in first.

Alonso also takes a penalty

13:20 , Dan Austin

LAP 10/58

A poor start is rapidly worsening for Fernando Alonso, who is now on the receiving end of a penalty himself for spinning Mick Schumacher around after dropping to the back at turn 1.

Alonso is currently down in 17th.

Hamilton moves past Stroll

13:20 , Dan Austin

LAP 10/58

Lance Stroll proves a significantly less difficult opponent for Hamilton than Tsunoda, and the Mercedes man is up to seventh at the first time of asking.

He is now less than a second behind Lando Norris in sixth.

Gasly given penalty for Alonso contact

13:18 , Dan Austin

LAP 9/58

Pierre Gasly has been given a five-second time penalty for making contact with Fernando Alonso into turn 1.

The Frenchman had complained he was sandwiched by Sergio Perez on the inside and had nowhere to go, and to be honest that penalty seems a little harsh.

Hamilton finally passes Tsunoda

13:17 , Dan Austin

LAP 8/58

After seven laps stuck behind Yuki Tsunoda, Lewis Hamilton has finally passed the Japanese driver with a gorgeous, patient move around the long outside line at turn 3.

Lance Stroll is next on the hit-list.

Sainz making good progress

13:16 , Dan Austin

LAP 7/58

Carlos Sainz started 19th but is up to 13th already and has dispatched George Russell and Kimi Raikkonen most recently with smart moves around the circuit’s slower corners in the final sector.

He’s finding it easier than anybody out there to move through the field in the damp conditions.

Hamilton stuck behind Tsunoda

13:12 , Dan Austin

LAP 5/58

Lewis Hamilton remains stuck behind Yuki Tsunoda in ninth, with the Japanese driver making his Alpha Tauri as wide as possible to block any move from the seven-time world champion.

Sister team Red Bull will pleased about that, no doubt.

Alonso hits Schumacher

13:11 , Dan Austin

LAP 4/58

After dropping towards the back of the field Fernando Alonso has now made contact with a second driver, clumsily side-swiping Mick Schumacher’s Haas after he attempted the overtake.

The young German spins out and Alonso goes through.

Perez, Norris and Hamilton making strides

13:08 , Dan Austin

LAP 2/58

Hamilton is now up to ninth after passing Sebastian Vettel and is all over the gearbox of Yuki Tsunoda.

Meanwhile, Sergio Perez has passed Pierre Gasly to go fourth and Lando Norris is ahead of Lance Stroll in sixth.

Race is underway and Alonso spins!

13:05 , Dan Austin

LAP 1/58

Pierre Gasly makes contact with Fernando Alonso at turn 1 and spins him around! Bottas still leads and Verstappen remains second.

Hamilton is up to tenth.

Drivers are on the formation lap

13:00 , Dan Austin

All 20 cars are making their way around the wet Istanbul Park circuit on the formation lap, meaning we’re only a few minutes away from lights out.

A reminder that every single driver starts on the intermediates.

The start could be spectacular here.

Wolff pleased with conditions for Hamilton

12:54 , Dan Austin

Toto Wolff has told Sky Sports that the damp track is a positive for Lewis Hamilton, who starts down the order.

“I like the conditions [for Hamilton], but let’s speak again after lap 1,” the Austrian said. “Turn 1 is so complicated, and there is no winning formula from P11. If Valtteri can get a proper getaway we have a car that can win.”

Risk of further rain is 20%

12:51 , Dan Austin

Never mind the idea of the track drying out for slick tyres, race control says the chances of further rain falling at some point while cars are on track is 20%.

That means we’ll be starting on intermediates and could eventually have to move on to full wet tyres, or if the rain doesn’t come, the dries are possible too.

This race could be chaos in these conditions, so make sure to stick with us throughout.

Lando Norris talks similarities with Russia

12:48 , Dan Austin

McLaren’s Lando Norris has been telling Sky Sports about the similarities in weather conditions to Russia last time out, but doubts a strong finishing position is on the cards.

“There’s things we’ve learned which we can bring to now, but it’s not exactly the same,” the 21-year-old said. “I don’t think we have as much pace as we did two weeks ago. Even in these conditions, with this track layout, it’s going to be tricky for us.

Comical Turkish national anthem taking place

12:46 , Dan Austin

After Formula 1’s We Race As One message, the Turkish national anthem is currently being sung by a performer, and honestly, you’ve never seen more obvious miming in your entire life.

The drivers stand staring awkwardly but the crowd goes wild!

Alpine boss says team will take “traditional” Alonso approach

12:43 , Dan Austin

Alpine team principal Marcin Budkowski has been telling Sky Sports about his team’s differing strategies with their two cars in Turkey.

“Honestly, you can’t make predictions in such a race,” the Pole said. “It doesn’t look like it’s going to dry, so it’s going to be a difficult call. Fernando [Alonso] drove very well yesterday, he’s a clever guy and so opportunities are there.

“Starting fifth is a good position for us. Chances are we’ll be more traditional with Fernando in fifth, and take more risks with Esteban [Ocon] starting P12.”

Horner gives cheeky response about Gasly blocking Hamilton

12:39 , Dan Austin

Christian Horner has been talking to Sky Sports about how the damp track can bring the field closer together.

“It’s really interesting conditions, it’s going to be down to the drivers and getting the calls right on the pitwall,” the Red Bull team principal said. “The rain is a great equaliser. It’s equally wet across both sides of the grid, so I’m hoping it’s pretty even.

Asked whether he had spoken to sister team Alpha Tauri to tell them have Pierre Gasly block Lewis Hamilton on his way through, Horner coyly responded: “Of course we would never say anything like that! We have to focus on our race, and I’m sure Valtteri has a focus as well. Lewis is going to be a big factor in this race, so we just have to get on with and enjoy it.”

Bottas full of confidence in Mercedes car

12:32 , Dan Austin

Valtteri Bottas has been talking up his chances of winning the race, and his belief comes from the consistency he has felt in his Mercedes machinery.

“It’s a good chance for the win,” he told Sky Sports. “It seems like every race now it’s raining. What gives me confidence is the car has been feeling good in any condition this weekend.”

Three drivers could influence title fight hugely

12:31 , Dan Austin

Charles Leclerc, Pierre Gasly and Fernando Alonso all put in superb performances in qualifying and will start the race third, fourth and fifth respectively.

That puts them directly behind Max Verstappen, first of all, but also means they will be blocking Lewis Hamilton if the Briton is able to make his way towards the front from eleventh.

All three will be running their own races and aiming for the podium, but battling with either title contender could have enormous ramifications for which driver ultimately takes the crown.

Tyre strategy will be vital

12:27 , Dan Austin

The sky at Istanbul Park is covered in an intensely thick level of dark grey cloud which suggests we won’t be seeing the sunshine at any point during this race.

That means that the surface of the circuit will struggle to dry out quickly and it could mean a late switch to dry tyres is necessary.

If that is the case, timing will be crucial and the drivers who can read the changing conditions best will be the ones who make a success of their race.

Drivers head to the grid on intermediate tyres

12:24 , Dan Austin

The pitlane is open and drivers are tip-toeing their way around the circuit as they line up in grid order.

All cars are currently on intermediate tyres and the spray kicked up by Max Verstappen’s Red Bull is a sure-fire indication that there is no chance of starting on dry tyres.

Valtteri Bottas has a couple of twitchy moments on his tour around the track, and the start is going to be immensely difficult for all 20 cars here.

Ricciardo and Sainz out of position

12:21 , Dan Austin

It’s not only Hamilton who will be looking to make significant gains right from the start.

Daniel Ricciardo was knocked out in Q1 on Saturday after timing his final run badly and has taken an engine penalty accordingly, meaning he will start from the very back of the pack, while Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz also starts from the rear of the grid after taking a full engine change ahead of this Grand Prix.

Both drivers will still be aiming to reach the top ten in order to score points, but overtaking the slower cars in treacherous conditions could prove very tricky indeed.

Damp track could cause havoc at turn 1

12:19 , Dan Austin

The Istanbul Park circuit is currently damp after consistent showers throughout the morning, and we saw how the changeable conditions caused significant problems for all drivers in yesterday afternoon’s session.

We already have a shaken up grid order, here, and a moist track could catch plenty of cars out into the heavy braking zone of turn 1.

Bottas not in the mood to help Hamilton

12:12 , Dan Austin

Hamilton’s team-mate Valtteri Bottas starts on pole, meanwhile, and is concentrating on his own race rather than assisting his colleague’s title fight.

The Finn told Sky Sports after qualifying: “Not easy conditions. Q1 was a bit on the edge with the damp. The last lap I missed a bit in the final sector with understeer. I’m on pole, and that should be good. I’ll focus on my own race tomorrow. I think that’s the way to go.”

Hamilton going "maximum attack”

12:09 , Dan Austin

Speaking in his post-qualifying interview yesterday afternoon, Hamilton talked through his battle plan to try and make it to the podium in Turkey.

“My eyes are still solely set on winning the race,” he said. “It’s going to be hard from P11 but I’m staying on my toes and going maximum attack from the start.

“I’m just going to take it one step at a time tomorrow. It’s a long race, I have to stay out of trouble. That will be my priority initially, and then try to pick them off one by one.”

Damage limitation exercise for Hamilton

12:06 , Dan Austin

Lewis Hamilton is starting in 11th place this afternoon, despite being the fastest man around Istanbul Park in qualifying yesterday, thanks to a ten-place grid penalty for changing a component in his Mercedes power unit.

With Max Verstappen starting second, the seven-time world champion needs to cut through the field as quickly as he possibly can in order to ensure the Dutchman doesn’t take a sizeable Drivers Championship lead into the next round in the United States.

Turkish Grand Prix

11:03 , Dan Austin

Welcome to The Independent’s live coverage of the Turkish Grand Prix where Lewis Hamilton will need to come from behind on the grid to maintain his slender lead in the championship over Max Verstappen.