Valtteri Bottas kept up his hopes of ending the year on a high after setting the fastest lap in practice for Formula One's season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Friday.

The Mercedes driver, still winless in 2018 while teammate Lewis Hamilton has taken 10 victories and clinched a fifth title with two races to spare, lapped the floodlit Yas Marina circuit with a best time of one minute 37.236 seconds.

Bottas won last year's finale from pole position and also set the fastest lap.

"It's nice to be on top of the timesheets, but we now need to build on that, we need to try and make the right set-up changes and I also need to find more performance from myself," he said.

Red Bull's Max Verstappen, fastest in the first session with a lap of 1:38.491, was second fastest in the evening and 0.044 slower than the Finn.

The 21-year-old Dutch driver damaged his car on a kerb, requiring repairs.

"The car seems to be working really well again, better than expected just like we experienced in Brazil," said Verstappen, who was runner-up in that race two weeks ago.

"I would expect this to be another circuit where tyre management is key to a good result, hopefully it plays into our hands again. Both long runs and short runs look good for the tyres so I’m pleased with how it has gone so far."

Australian Daniel Ricciardo, in his last race with Red Bull before leaving for Renault, was second and third respectively in the sessions.

With both titles already won by Mercedes for the fifth year in a row, Sunday's race should be a no-holds-barred battle for victory without team orders or other considerations.

Verstappen, at the centre of attention in Brazil after a collision with Force India back-marker Esteban Ocon that cost him victory and led to a post-race confrontation, can on Saturday become the sport's youngest driver to take pole position.

Hamilton was fourth in both sessions.

"Red Bull looked quick today, they're usually fast in practice and in the race, so I have no doubts it will be the same this weekend," said the Briton, who replaced his usual number 44 with a one on his car for the first stint.

The Briton won in Brazil despite concerns his car's engine was about to fail.

He used the same engine for practice, after the team found a failure in the variable inlet system that caused unstable combustion, with some permitted hardware changes.

Trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin said everything looked normal after the two sessions.

Ocon was fifth fastest in the afternoon, in what looks likely to be his last race for a while with Canadian Lance Stroll set to take his place.

Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen, preparing for his last race with the team before joining Sauber, and season's runner-up Sebastian Vettel were seventh and eighth in session one and then fifth and sixth.

McLaren's double world champion Fernando Alonso had a special livery on his car, matching his helmet colours, for his last race before leaving Formula One.

Poland's Robert Kubica, announced on Thursday as a 2019 Williams driver, was also on track testing car developments and without chasing a quick time in first practice.

He was last on the timesheets, more than four seconds slower than Verstappen.

Sauber's Marcus Ericsson, also moving on after Sunday's race, spun at turn one and hit the barriers in the afternoon.

Valtteri Bottas kept up his hopes of ending the year on a high after setting the fastest lap in practice for Formula One's season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Friday.

Valtteri Bottas kept up his hopes of ending the year on a high after setting the fastest lap in practice for Formula One's season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Friday. The Mercedes driver, still winless in 2018 while teammate Lewis Hamilton has taken 10 victories and clinched a fifth title with two races to spare, lapped the floodlit Yas Marina circuit with a best time of one minute 37.236 seconds. Bottas won last year's finale from pole position and also set the fastest lap. "It's nice to be on top of the timesheets, but we now need to build on that, we need to try and make the right set-up changes and I also need to find more performance from myself," he said. Red Bull's Max Verstappen, fastest in the first session with a lap of 1:38.491, was second fastest in the evening and 0.044 slower than the Finn. The 21-year-old Dutch driver damaged his car on a kerb, requiring repairs. "The car seems to be working really well again, better than expected just like we experienced in Brazil," said Verstappen, who was runner-up in that race two weeks ago. "I would expect this to be another circuit where tyre management is key to a good result, hopefully it plays into our hands again. Both long runs and short runs look good for the tyres so I’m pleased with how it has gone so far." Australian Daniel Ricciardo, in his last race with Red Bull before leaving for Renault, was second and third respectively in the sessions. With both titles already won by Mercedes for the fifth year in a row, Sunday's race should be a no-holds-barred battle for victory without team orders or other considerations. Verstappen, at the centre of attention in Brazil after a collision with Force India back-marker Esteban Ocon that cost him victory and led to a post-race confrontation, can on Saturday become the sport's youngest driver to take pole position. Hamilton was fourth in both sessions. "Red Bull looked quick today, they're usually fast in practice and in the race, so I have no doubts it will be the same this weekend," said the Briton, who replaced his usual number 44 with a one on his car for the first stint. The Briton won in Brazil despite concerns his car's engine was about to fail. He used the same engine for practice, after the team found a failure in the variable inlet system that caused unstable combustion, with some permitted hardware changes. Trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin said everything looked normal after the two sessions. Ocon was fifth fastest in the afternoon, in what looks likely to be his last race for a while with Canadian Lance Stroll set to take his place. Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen, preparing for his last race with the team before joining Sauber, and season's runner-up Sebastian Vettel were seventh and eighth in session one and then fifth and sixth. McLaren's double world champion Fernando Alonso had a special livery on his car, matching his helmet colours, for his last race before leaving Formula One. Poland's Robert Kubica, announced on Thursday as a 2019 Williams driver, was also on track testing car developments and without chasing a quick time in first practice. He was last on the timesheets, more than four seconds slower than Verstappen. Sauber's Marcus Ericsson, also moving on after Sunday's race, spun at turn one and hit the barriers in the afternoon.

Valtteri Bottas puts Mercedes on top in Abu Dhabi practice

Valtteri Bottas of Finland (Mercedes) claimed pole position for the Russian Grand Prix on Saturday, his second pole of the 2018 Formula One season, ahead of British teammate Lewis Hamilton and Germany's&nbsp;(Ferrari).

Bottas finished the qualifying round for Sunday's race with a time of one minute and 31.387 seconds, 0.145 seconds faster than 2018 championship leader Hamilton and 0.556 ahead of Vettel.

Bottas started from pole at the Austrian Grand Prix in July, but did not finish due to a hydraulic problem.

Hamilton, despite a small mistake that cost him pole, set his own record and posted his fastest lap in the Sochi Autodrom circuit with a time of one minute and 31.532 seconds.

Ferrari's other driver, Kimi Raikkonen of Finland, will start Sunday's race from the second row alongside Vettel, having finished the qualifying round in fourth place with a time of one minute and 32.237 seconds.

Hamilton has a 40-point lead over Vettel in the overall standings.

Valtteri Bottas of Finland (Mercedes) claimed pole position for the Russian Grand Prix on Saturday, his second pole of the 2018 Formula One season, ahead of British teammate Lewis Hamilton and Germany's (Ferrari).

Valtteri Bottas of Finland (Mercedes) claimed pole position for the Russian Grand Prix on Saturday, his second pole of the 2018 Formula One season, ahead of British teammate Lewis Hamilton and Germany's (Ferrari). Bottas finished the qualifying round for Sunday's race with a time of one minute and 31.387 seconds, 0.145 seconds faster than 2018 championship leader Hamilton and 0.556 ahead of Vettel. Bottas started from pole at the Austrian Grand Prix in July, but did not finish due to a hydraulic problem. Hamilton, despite a small mistake that cost him pole, set his own record and posted his fastest lap in the Sochi Autodrom circuit with a time of one minute and 31.532 seconds. Ferrari's other driver, Kimi Raikkonen of Finland, will start Sunday's race from the second row alongside Vettel, having finished the qualifying round in fourth place with a time of one minute and 32.237 seconds. Hamilton has a 40-point lead over Vettel in the overall standings.

Bottas claims second pole in 2018 ahead of Hamilton, Vettel at Russian GP

Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas has welcomed the move to replace the &#39;grid girls&#39; with the &#39;grid kids&#39; at every Formula One race of the 2018 season.

Liberty Media, the F1&#39;s American owners, had earlier polarised fans by announcing the removal of the long-standing practice of using grid girls in the lead-up to F1 races, saying &quot;It does not resonate with brand values and clearly is at odds with modern-day societal norms.

&quot;Reflecting on the same, Bottas said that though &#39;grid girls&#39; have been a part of the motorsport for quite a long time now, the idea of introducing children in the F1 would be a great idea.

&quot;Generally speaking, grid girls have been part of motorsport but in the future, they will no longer be at the F1 races. Over the years there were some races where we did not have them already,&quot; Sport24 quoted Bottas, as saying.

&quot;The positive side is that many children&#39;s dreams can now be realised with access to the grid with the drivers. I think that&#39;s really cool,&quot; he added.

Echoing similar views, Jorn Teske, marketing boss at Hockenheim, said that &#39;grid kids&#39; would help in grabbing the attention of the younger audience.

&quot;We were informed in advance that a change is planned. We do not know the details of the implementation yet. Even though grid girls would still be very welcomed by us, the idea of grid kids has merit as well. Formula one needs a new, younger audience and if grid kids help with that, that`s a nice idea,&quot; Teske added.

The grid kids will be chosen by the motorsport clubs, with the lucky few getting a chance to accompany and stand alongside the 20 best drivers in the world on the grid as they prepare for the race.

&nbsp;

Earlier F1's American owners announced removal of the long-standing practice of using grid girls in the lead-up to F1 races

Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas has welcomed the move to replace the 'grid girls' with the 'grid kids' at every Formula One race of the 2018 season. Liberty Media, the F1's American owners, had earlier polarised fans by announcing the removal of the long-standing practice of using grid girls in the lead-up to F1 races, saying "It does not resonate with brand values and clearly is at odds with modern-day societal norms. "Reflecting on the same, Bottas said that though 'grid girls' have been a part of the motorsport for quite a long time now, the idea of introducing children in the F1 would be a great idea. "Generally speaking, grid girls have been part of motorsport but in the future, they will no longer be at the F1 races. Over the years there were some races where we did not have them already," Sport24 quoted Bottas, as saying. "The positive side is that many children's dreams can now be realised with access to the grid with the drivers. I think that's really cool," he added. Echoing similar views, Jorn Teske, marketing boss at Hockenheim, said that 'grid kids' would help in grabbing the attention of the younger audience. "We were informed in advance that a change is planned. We do not know the details of the implementation yet. Even though grid girls would still be very welcomed by us, the idea of grid kids has merit as well. Formula one needs a new, younger audience and if grid kids help with that, that`s a nice idea," Teske added. The grid kids will be chosen by the motorsport clubs, with the lucky few getting a chance to accompany and stand alongside the 20 best drivers in the world on the grid as they prepare for the race.

Valtteri Bottas welcomes 'grid kids' move in F1

Finland&#39;s Valtteri Bottas won the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday, finishing ahead of world champion Lewis Hamilton with Sebastian Vettel taking third.

It was a third career win for Bottas, all of which have come this season after he was signed by Mercedes to replace the retired Nico Rosberg.

Valtteri Bottas won the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. finishing ahead of world champion Lewis Hamilton with Sebastian Vettel taking third

Finland's Valtteri Bottas won the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday, finishing ahead of world champion Lewis Hamilton with Sebastian Vettel taking third. It was a third career win for Bottas, all of which have come this season after he was signed by Mercedes to replace the retired Nico Rosberg.

Formula One: Bottas wins Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

Valtteri Bottas denied quadruple world champion team mate Lewis Hamilton the final pole position of the Formula One season on Saturday, leading a Mercedes one-two in Abu Dhabi Grand Prix qualifying.

The pole was the Finn&#39;s second in a row, after Brazil two weeks ago, and fourth of the campaign. Hamilton had been aiming for his 12th of the year.

Ferrari&#39;s Sebastian Vettel qualified third with Australian Daniel Ricciardo lining up alongside him on the second row of the grid for Red Bull.

Hamilton won his fourth title in Mexico last month while Mercedes clinched their fourth successive constructors&#39; championship with three races to spare.

Valtteri Bottas denied quadruple world champion team mate Lewis Hamilton the final pole position of the Formula One season on Saturday, leading a Mercedes one-two in Abu Dhabi Grand Prix qualifying

Valtteri Bottas denied quadruple world champion team mate Lewis Hamilton the final pole position of the Formula One season on Saturday, leading a Mercedes one-two in Abu Dhabi Grand Prix qualifying. The pole was the Finn's second in a row, after Brazil two weeks ago, and fourth of the campaign. Hamilton had been aiming for his 12th of the year. Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel qualified third with Australian Daniel Ricciardo lining up alongside him on the second row of the grid for Red Bull. Hamilton won his fourth title in Mexico last month while Mercedes clinched their fourth successive constructors' championship with three races to spare.

Formula One: Bottas denies Hamilton final pole of 2017

Valtteri Bottas allowed himself a roar of delight on Saturday when he claimed pole position for the Brazilian Grand Prix after Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton had crashed out of contention.

The 28-year-old Finn said he was delighted to succeed because he had promised to take pole to boost spirits in the team after some members had been robbed at gunpoint on Friday when they left the track in a mini-bus.

&ldquo;I spoke with them this morning and I said we were going to put it on pole position and cheer everyone up, so I&rsquo;m glad we did that,&quot; said Bottas.

&ldquo;First of all, I&rsquo;m happy everyone is in one piece and nothing physical happened to anyone, but it was a pretty bad situation to be in and I&rsquo;m happy everybody is still here.&quot;

Bottas&rsquo;s pole brought to an end a difficult period during which he had slid out of contention for the drivers&rsquo; championship and been out-qualified by Hamilton at every race since the mid-season break in August.

&ldquo;For sure, it has been more difficult, sometimes better, but that&rsquo;s how it goes in racing,&quot; added Bottas, who said he felt a duty to perform for the team especially after Hamilton, who clinched his fourth drivers world title in Mexico two weeks ago, spun off into the barriers on his first flying lap in Q1.

Hamilton was relegated to the back of the grid and then discovered he will start Sunday&#39;s race from the pit lane after Mercedes decided that they would have to take his car out parc ferme to carry out repairs.

&ldquo;I think the performance line, for me, in the last few races has been all the way going up,&quot; added Bottas.

&ldquo;I&rsquo;m just feeling better and better with the car, we&rsquo;ve just been working hard on the issues we&rsquo;ve been having.

&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve been learning a lot, getting better, learning from the mistakes and the tricky sessions. The last few weekends have been a lot better in qualifying -- there were just a couple of hundredths of a second between Lewis and me.

&ldquo;It&rsquo;s also been the case all weekend here so it was a shame he wasn&#39;t in Q3, but I&rsquo;m still very pleased with my performance.&quot;

With Hamilton eliminated, Bottas rose to the challenge and outpaced the Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel to grab his third pole position.&nbsp;

Bottas trails second placed Vettel by 15 points in the championship and hopes to overhaul him for runners-up spot with two races left. &nbsp;

It brought him a well-deserved moment of pleasure on a challenging day for champions Mercedes. &nbsp;&nbsp;

Hamilton, struggling with a cold, tweeted about the violent incident before his team made an official statement confirming it had taken place.&nbsp;

No-one was hurt, but shots were fired and valuables were stolen. &nbsp;

He urged teams and organisers to intensify security arrangements.

Then, on his first flying lap, he lost control of his car and spun into the barriers.

&ldquo;It happened really quick,&quot; said Hamilton. &quot;It is what it is. Of course, it&rsquo;s unfortunate&hellip;

&ldquo;I tend to just look at it as -- challenges are what make life interesting and overcoming them makes life meaningful. I just need to take whatever bubble of negativity comes from that experience and move forwards and try and grow from it.

&ldquo;It&rsquo;s very unusual from me, but it shows we are all human and things happen. I will try to have as much fun as possible tomorrow (in the race). Years ago, I came from quite far behind and had a great race here.&rdquo;

Hamilton may also have remembered that he battled to finish fifth with a passing move on the final corner of the final lap that brought him his first championship in 2008.

Valtteri Bottas allowed himself a roar of delight on Saturday when he claimed pole position for the Brazilian Grand Prix after Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton had crashed out of contention

Valtteri Bottas allowed himself a roar of delight on Saturday when he claimed pole position for the Brazilian Grand Prix after Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton had crashed out of contention. The 28-year-old Finn said he was delighted to succeed because he had promised to take pole to boost spirits in the team after some members had been robbed at gunpoint on Friday when they left the track in a mini-bus. “I spoke with them this morning and I said we were going to put it on pole position and cheer everyone up, so I’m glad we did that," said Bottas. “First of all, I’m happy everyone is in one piece and nothing physical happened to anyone, but it was a pretty bad situation to be in and I’m happy everybody is still here." Bottas’s pole brought to an end a difficult period during which he had slid out of contention for the drivers’ championship and been out-qualified by Hamilton at every race since the mid-season break in August. “For sure, it has been more difficult, sometimes better, but that’s how it goes in racing," added Bottas, who said he felt a duty to perform for the team especially after Hamilton, who clinched his fourth drivers world title in Mexico two weeks ago, spun off into the barriers on his first flying lap in Q1. Hamilton was relegated to the back of the grid and then discovered he will start Sunday's race from the pit lane after Mercedes decided that they would have to take his car out parc ferme to carry out repairs. “I think the performance line, for me, in the last few races has been all the way going up," added Bottas. “I’m just feeling better and better with the car, we’ve just been working hard on the issues we’ve been having. “We’ve been learning a lot, getting better, learning from the mistakes and the tricky sessions. The last few weekends have been a lot better in qualifying -- there were just a couple of hundredths of a second between Lewis and me. “It’s also been the case all weekend here so it was a shame he wasn't in Q3, but I’m still very pleased with my performance." With Hamilton eliminated, Bottas rose to the challenge and outpaced the Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel to grab his third pole position. Bottas trails second placed Vettel by 15 points in the championship and hopes to overhaul him for runners-up spot with two races left. It brought him a well-deserved moment of pleasure on a challenging day for champions Mercedes. Hamilton, struggling with a cold, tweeted about the violent incident before his team made an official statement confirming it had taken place. No-one was hurt, but shots were fired and valuables were stolen. He urged teams and organisers to intensify security arrangements. Then, on his first flying lap, he lost control of his car and spun into the barriers. “It happened really quick," said Hamilton. "It is what it is. Of course, it’s unfortunate… “I tend to just look at it as -- challenges are what make life interesting and overcoming them makes life meaningful. I just need to take whatever bubble of negativity comes from that experience and move forwards and try and grow from it. “It’s very unusual from me, but it shows we are all human and things happen. I will try to have as much fun as possible tomorrow (in the race). Years ago, I came from quite far behind and had a great race here.” Hamilton may also have remembered that he battled to finish fifth with a passing move on the final corner of the final lap that brought him his first championship in 2008.

Formula One: Bottas shines on a troubled day for Mercedes and Hamilton

Valtteri Bottas claimed his maiden Formula One victory on Sunday when he resisted intense pressure from championship leader Sebastian Vettel to triumph for Mercedes in a tense Russian Grand Prix.

The Finnish driver, starting from third place on the grid, grabbed the initiative at the start by powering past both Ferraris and into the lead while his Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton struggled home fourth.

Four-time champion Vettel finished second ahead of Ferrari team-mate Kimi Raikkonen who claimed his first podium finish since last year&#39;s Austrian Grand Prix.

The popular Bottas&#39;s first win was warmly received by his fellow drivers and the paddock, Hamilton hugging him after he had jumped into the arms of his crew and Vettel joining the reception, Russian President Vladimir Putin also present for congratulations and prize giving.

&quot;Worth the wait!&quot; said the unflappable Bottas in typical understated style after coming home just six-tenths of a second ahead of Vettel at the flag.

Dutch teenager Max Verstappen finished fifth for Red Bull ahead of Mexican Sergio Perez and his Force India team-mate Esteban Ocon, German Nico Hulkenberg of Renault and Brazilian Felipe Massa of Williams.

The result lifted Vettel clear at the top of the drivers championship with 86 points ahead of Hamilton on 73 with Bottas up to third with 63 points. Mercedes lead the constructors title race with 136 points to Ferrari on 135 after four rounds of this year&rsquo;s championship.

Bottas became Finland&rsquo;s fifth Formula One race winner following Keke Rosberg, Mika Hakkinen, Kimi Raikkonen and Heikki Kovalainen, who was the last from the Nordic country to triumph, at the 2008 Hungarian Grand Prix.

&#39;This is Valtteri&#39;s day&#39;&nbsp;

Vettel was seemingly as pleased for Bottas as if he had won himself.

&quot;I tried everything to catch him and I thought there would be an opportunity on the back straight,&quot; the German said.

&quot;I thought I could do it, but I wasn&rsquo;t sure what Felipe Massa would do and I ended up losing out. It doesn&rsquo;t matter though. Big congratulations to Valtteri. This is his day.&quot;

Raikkonen said: &quot;I have had a bit of a rough start to the season, but this week has been a step forward, but we still only finished third. So, we&rsquo;ll keep trying.&quot;

On a balmy Spring day by the Black Sea, two-time champion Fernando Alonso was an instant retirement before the start when the Spaniard abandoned his troublesome McLaren Honda.

This delayed the start for an additional formation lap before Bottas made his exhilarating getaway.

Almost immediately, Frenchman Romain Grosjean of Haas collided with the Renault of Briton Jolyon Palmer at Turn Two, the cars crashing heavily to trigger a red-flagged halt and a Safety Car intervention.

After a six-minute stoppage, Bottas was sharpest at the re-start when the Safety Car pulled in and he dominated, pulling 3.1 seconds clear of Vettel by lap 10 as Hamilton, back in fourth, struggled with intermittent power and over-heating problems.

Ricciardo was another early departure after just seven laps with brake problems.

By lap 18, Bottas was controlling events with a 4.5-sec lead and the top four were separated by less than 14 seconds.

The leading positions remained unchanged until the pit-stops, which saw Bottas first in for super-softs followed by Raikkonen and Hamilton, Vettel leading from lap 27 until lap 34 when he finally pitted for new rubber. &nbsp;

This enabled Bottas to regain the initiative, but an error at Turn 13 on lap 38, when he had a serious lock-up and narrowly avoided the wall, invited Vettel, on fresher tyres, back into contention.

Needing no second invitation, the German closed the gap to 1.5 seconds with 10 laps to go and set up a grandstand finish, but Bottas hung on to take his first emotional and welcome victory in his 81st Grand Prix.

(AFP)

Bottas, in a Mercedes, jumped into the lead from third in the grid and never ceded his place

Valtteri Bottas claimed his maiden Formula One victory on Sunday when he resisted intense pressure from championship leader Sebastian Vettel to triumph for Mercedes in a tense Russian Grand Prix. The Finnish driver, starting from third place on the grid, grabbed the initiative at the start by powering past both Ferraris and into the lead while his Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton struggled home fourth. Four-time champion Vettel finished second ahead of Ferrari team-mate Kimi Raikkonen who claimed his first podium finish since last year's Austrian Grand Prix. The popular Bottas's first win was warmly received by his fellow drivers and the paddock, Hamilton hugging him after he had jumped into the arms of his crew and Vettel joining the reception, Russian President Vladimir Putin also present for congratulations and prize giving. "Worth the wait!" said the unflappable Bottas in typical understated style after coming home just six-tenths of a second ahead of Vettel at the flag. Dutch teenager Max Verstappen finished fifth for Red Bull ahead of Mexican Sergio Perez and his Force India team-mate Esteban Ocon, German Nico Hulkenberg of Renault and Brazilian Felipe Massa of Williams. The result lifted Vettel clear at the top of the drivers championship with 86 points ahead of Hamilton on 73 with Bottas up to third with 63 points. Mercedes lead the constructors title race with 136 points to Ferrari on 135 after four rounds of this year’s championship. Bottas became Finland’s fifth Formula One race winner following Keke Rosberg, Mika Hakkinen, Kimi Raikkonen and Heikki Kovalainen, who was the last from the Nordic country to triumph, at the 2008 Hungarian Grand Prix. 'This is Valtteri's day' Vettel was seemingly as pleased for Bottas as if he had won himself. "I tried everything to catch him and I thought there would be an opportunity on the back straight," the German said. "I thought I could do it, but I wasn’t sure what Felipe Massa would do and I ended up losing out. It doesn’t matter though. Big congratulations to Valtteri. This is his day." Raikkonen said: "I have had a bit of a rough start to the season, but this week has been a step forward, but we still only finished third. So, we’ll keep trying." On a balmy Spring day by the Black Sea, two-time champion Fernando Alonso was an instant retirement before the start when the Spaniard abandoned his troublesome McLaren Honda. This delayed the start for an additional formation lap before Bottas made his exhilarating getaway. Almost immediately, Frenchman Romain Grosjean of Haas collided with the Renault of Briton Jolyon Palmer at Turn Two, the cars crashing heavily to trigger a red-flagged halt and a Safety Car intervention. After a six-minute stoppage, Bottas was sharpest at the re-start when the Safety Car pulled in and he dominated, pulling 3.1 seconds clear of Vettel by lap 10 as Hamilton, back in fourth, struggled with intermittent power and over-heating problems. Ricciardo was another early departure after just seven laps with brake problems. By lap 18, Bottas was controlling events with a 4.5-sec lead and the top four were separated by less than 14 seconds. The leading positions remained unchanged until the pit-stops, which saw Bottas first in for super-softs followed by Raikkonen and Hamilton, Vettel leading from lap 27 until lap 34 when he finally pitted for new rubber. This enabled Bottas to regain the initiative, but an error at Turn 13 on lap 38, when he had a serious lock-up and narrowly avoided the wall, invited Vettel, on fresher tyres, back into contention. Needing no second invitation, the German closed the gap to 1.5 seconds with 10 laps to go and set up a grandstand finish, but Bottas hung on to take his first emotional and welcome victory in his 81st Grand Prix. (AFP)

Russian GP: Bottas staves off Vettel challenge for maiden win

A cool, calm and collected Valtteri Bottas claimed his first pole position on Saturday when he beat his Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton with a well-controlled fastest lap in qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix.

The 26-year-old Finn, who joined the team as replacement for retired 2016 world champion Nico Rosberg, made the most of a less competitive final lap by the Briton to claim the prime starting position for Sunday`s race.

&quot;Obviously, I am really happy,&quot; said Bottas. &quot;It took a few races, but hopefully it`s the first of many.&quot;

Bottas clocked a best lap of one minute and 28.769 seconds in the final seconds and it was, as Hamilton admitted, too good for him to beat. Hamilton had clocked 1:28.792.

&quot;He&#39;s been working so hard and today he was just quicker and he did a better job,&quot; said Hamilton. &quot;The first sector was my weaker point. I&#39;ll work on it for tomorrow.

&quot;That&#39;s how close qualifying should always be. It forces us to be on the limit.&quot;

Bottas&#39;&nbsp;lap was comfortably faster than Rosberg&#39;s pole time last year of 1:29.493,&nbsp;but the overall speed of the new era &#39;fatter-and-faster&#39;&nbsp;machines was less notable in the desert heat than it had been at the two previous races.

Hamilton, who was seeking his seventh successive pole position and third in a row this season, gave his team-mate a generous hug after the session.

Rosberg was amongst the first to congratulate the pole sittter.

&quot;Congrats Valtteri Bottas 1st pole! Great lap. Happy for all you guys at Merc,&quot; tweeted the German.

Three-time champion Hamilton who shares the championship lead with Sebastian Vettel, and who had been quickest until the final runs, was unable to find the extra speed he needed on his second run in Q3 to retain pole position.

Four-time champion Vettel was third fastest for Ferrari, unable to make an impact on the two Mercedes men who took the front row. It was the sixth consecutive year in Bahrain that Mercedes won pole.

&quot;I was very happy with my first lap, crossed the line and then looked up and saw both (Mercedes) were ahead,&quot; said Vettel. &quot;When I got the time, I was a bit down to be honest. Four-tenths is a lot more than I expected.&quot;

Australian Daniel Ricciardo was fourth for Red Bull ahead of Kimi Raikkonen in the second Ferrari, Max Verstappen in the second Red Bull and Nico Hulkenberg who qualified seventh for Renault.

Felipe Massa was eighth for Williams ahead of Romain Grosjean of Haas and Jolyon Palmer in the second Renault.

The conditions at the start of qualifying were cooler, and calmer, than they had been earlier in the day. The air temperature was down to 29 degrees Celsius and the track 31, down by six and eight degrees respectively compared to the earlier free practice session.

The first qualifying session saw exits for Carlos Sainz, who lost power with his Red Bull, and Stoffel Vandoorne of McLaren, Sergio Perez of Force India, Marcus Ericsson of Sauber and Kevin Magnussen of Haas.

In Q2, Indy 500-bound two-time champion Fernando Alonso took it easy.

After another Honda power-unit failure, he decided not to bother at all and was unzipping his overalls without seeking a place in the top ten shootout.

The McLaren man qualified 15th behind the four who were eliminated -- Daniil Kvyat of Toro Rosso, Canadian rookie Lance Stroll of Williams, Pascal Wehrlein of Sauber and Esteban Ocon of Force India.

Another impressive lap from Hulkenberg secured him the fifth-best lap and a place in the shootout for Renault.&nbsp;

Team-mate Palmer grabbed 10th to secure Renault`s first double showing in Q1 since the 2011 Japanese Grand Prix.

As the shootout began, the Red Bulls led the two Mercedes out for their final flurry, Ricciardo starting with a 1:30.007. That time was overhauled by Bottas in 1:28.844 -- the first man inside Hamilton&#39;s 2016 pole lap -- and then by the Briton in 1:28.792.

Vettel was four-tenths down for Ferrari after the first runs, which saw Raikkonen adrift by a similar gap before the final drama unfolded.&nbsp; 
 
(AFP)

Bottas clocked a best lap of one minute and 28.769 seconds in the final seconds

A cool, calm and collected Valtteri Bottas claimed his first pole position on Saturday when he beat his Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton with a well-controlled fastest lap in qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix. The 26-year-old Finn, who joined the team as replacement for retired 2016 world champion Nico Rosberg, made the most of a less competitive final lap by the Briton to claim the prime starting position for Sunday`s race. "Obviously, I am really happy," said Bottas. "It took a few races, but hopefully it`s the first of many." Bottas clocked a best lap of one minute and 28.769 seconds in the final seconds and it was, as Hamilton admitted, too good for him to beat. Hamilton had clocked 1:28.792. "He's been working so hard and today he was just quicker and he did a better job," said Hamilton. "The first sector was my weaker point. I'll work on it for tomorrow. "That's how close qualifying should always be. It forces us to be on the limit." Bottas' lap was comfortably faster than Rosberg's pole time last year of 1:29.493, but the overall speed of the new era 'fatter-and-faster' machines was less notable in the desert heat than it had been at the two previous races. Hamilton, who was seeking his seventh successive pole position and third in a row this season, gave his team-mate a generous hug after the session. Rosberg was amongst the first to congratulate the pole sittter. "Congrats Valtteri Bottas 1st pole! Great lap. Happy for all you guys at Merc," tweeted the German. Three-time champion Hamilton who shares the championship lead with Sebastian Vettel, and who had been quickest until the final runs, was unable to find the extra speed he needed on his second run in Q3 to retain pole position. Four-time champion Vettel was third fastest for Ferrari, unable to make an impact on the two Mercedes men who took the front row. It was the sixth consecutive year in Bahrain that Mercedes won pole. "I was very happy with my first lap, crossed the line and then looked up and saw both (Mercedes) were ahead," said Vettel. "When I got the time, I was a bit down to be honest. Four-tenths is a lot more than I expected." Australian Daniel Ricciardo was fourth for Red Bull ahead of Kimi Raikkonen in the second Ferrari, Max Verstappen in the second Red Bull and Nico Hulkenberg who qualified seventh for Renault. Felipe Massa was eighth for Williams ahead of Romain Grosjean of Haas and Jolyon Palmer in the second Renault. The conditions at the start of qualifying were cooler, and calmer, than they had been earlier in the day. The air temperature was down to 29 degrees Celsius and the track 31, down by six and eight degrees respectively compared to the earlier free practice session. The first qualifying session saw exits for Carlos Sainz, who lost power with his Red Bull, and Stoffel Vandoorne of McLaren, Sergio Perez of Force India, Marcus Ericsson of Sauber and Kevin Magnussen of Haas. In Q2, Indy 500-bound two-time champion Fernando Alonso took it easy. After another Honda power-unit failure, he decided not to bother at all and was unzipping his overalls without seeking a place in the top ten shootout. The McLaren man qualified 15th behind the four who were eliminated -- Daniil Kvyat of Toro Rosso, Canadian rookie Lance Stroll of Williams, Pascal Wehrlein of Sauber and Esteban Ocon of Force India. Another impressive lap from Hulkenberg secured him the fifth-best lap and a place in the shootout for Renault. Team-mate Palmer grabbed 10th to secure Renault`s first double showing in Q1 since the 2011 Japanese Grand Prix. As the shootout began, the Red Bulls led the two Mercedes out for their final flurry, Ricciardo starting with a 1:30.007. That time was overhauled by Bottas in 1:28.844 -- the first man inside Hamilton's 2016 pole lap -- and then by the Briton in 1:28.792. Vettel was four-tenths down for Ferrari after the first runs, which saw Raikkonen adrift by a similar gap before the final drama unfolded. (AFP)

Formula One: Bottas ends Hamilton run for first career pole

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