On Saturday, Hamilton will be aiming for his 100th career pole. On Sunday, he will be looking to equal Michael Schumacher’s six wins in Montmeló.
The Mercedes driver was .2 seconds ahead of teammate Lewis Hamilton and .77 seconds clear of Red Bull driver Max Verstappen.
Racing on the track where his childhood idol Ayrton Senna lost his life, Hamilton finished 0.097 seconds behind Bottas’ time of 1 minute, 13.609 seconds.
Having secured a record-extending 97th career pole, Hamilton can make Formula One history if he wins Sunday’s race with a 92nd win to move one clear of Michael Schumacher.
After leading Friday's two practice sessions, the Mercedes driver was .03 seconds quicker than teammate Lewis Hamilton and .16 ahead of Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Valtteri Bottas was 0.34 seconds faster than his teammate Lewis Hamilton in the first practice session of Portuguese GP.
Hamilton wins the Eifel Grand Prix on Sunday after Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas suffers DNF from the lead.
Bottas' time beat Hamilton by .256 seconds and Verstappen by .293. Ferrari recovered a little ground after a miserable run of races, with Charles Leclerc qualifying fourth and Sebastian Vettel 11th.
Bottas set the pace in 1 minute 26.225 seconds, with Lewis Hamilton .136 off his Mercedes teammate in second. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc third fastest, .456 off Bottas, and Sebastian Vettel fifth.
Hamilton had been looking to match Michael Schumacher's record of 91 wins in Formula One but had to settle for third behind Bottas and Max Verstappen.
Bottas was 0.229 seconds faster than Carlos Sainz and 0.323 quicker than Lando Norris after an impressive showing from the McLaren pair.
The championship leader finished .262 ahead of Bottas, who was quickest in first practice. McLaren driver Lando Norris was third, .897 slower than Hamilton.
The Finnish driver’s best lap was .245 seconds quicker than Hamilton and .797 ahead of Red Bull driver Alexander Albon.
The Finnish driver's best lap was .069 seconds quicker than his Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton, who leads the championship after winning four of the first six races.
Bottas was ahead of championship leader Hamilton on the first two splits but lost a fraction of time when he came out too wide from a turn at the end of his lap
The championship leader finished .287 ahead of Bottas, who had been quicker than Hamilton earlier in first practice.
The Finnish driver was .039 quicker than championship leader Hamilton and about 1 second ahead of Max Verstappen
Bottas took his first pole since the opening race of the pandemic-delayed season in Austria, which he went on to win.
Bottas posted a lap of 1 minute 26.166 seconds, beating Hamilton's best time by .138 seconds. Max Verstappen was third-fastest for Red Bull in 1:26.893.
Bottas played a key role in the team's success in the Constructors' Championship over the past three seasons and finished runner-up in the Drivers' Championship in 2019.
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