Valtteri Bottas feels he has learned important lessons from his previous race after claiming pole position for the Portuguese Grand Prix.

Bottas qualified eighth last time out at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix as Max Verstappen took victory for Red Bull.

Verstappen had been tipped to grab pole in Portimao but, after struggling in the windy conditions, he was denied the fastest lap after a correction to avoid a crash at Turn 4 saw his time chalked off for exceeding track limits.

Bottas will start Sunday's race from the front of the grid, denying team-mate Lewis Hamilton the 100th pole of his career by 0.007 seconds, with Verstappen in third.

The Finnish driver was in buoyant mood after tying the great Jackie Stewart on 17 career pole positions, especially given his inauspicious drive at Imola last month, when a crash with George Russell ended a disappointing race weekend.

"It definitely put a smile on my face, because in the first two races of the season, the qualifying really from my side… at least the Q3 session hasn't been the strong point and getting everything out of the car and tyres to work well has been a bit of a weakness," he said.

"But now, it felt like things are starting to go in the right direction. I've been feeling strong all weekend so I knew it was possible and it definitely makes me really happy to put it together in Q3 and be on pole. And as a team as well, with the pressure and with the battle from Red Bull, it's good to be ahead.

"Mentally, I took all the learning points [from Imola], and there were a lot of lessons from that last race, as always. So, I took those, and the rest that I should forget, I completely moved aside and forgot those and moved on."

Hamilton was able to secure a 71st front-row lockout for Mercedes since 2014 but struggled throughout the session, while even the softer compound in Q3 did not yield sufficient grip for better times.

"There was honestly so much time available and I just didn't put it together," said the reigning world champion. "It's really tricky conditions here. The surface of the track is very smooth, and not a lot of grip and the tyres – you need extra laps to get the temperatures even though it's a really nice day.

"Then the balance… one minute you have grip; the next minute, you don't, so it's very tricky for everyone.

"It felt quite good in P3 today and on that Q2 lap it felt solid, and I thought that we were in the right window but it's temperatures... there are gusts of wind so you can be unlucky and get tail winds that perhaps you wouldn't normally get on particular corners."

Verstappen, meanwhile, is hoping for better on Sunday after admitting the lack of grip has made little about the weekend enjoyable so far.

Having won from third at Imola, he remains hopeful Red Bull's straight-line speed will be enough to put the Mercedes under pressure as he aims to overturn the one-point gap to Hamilton in the standings.

"It's been a bit hit and miss anyway, the whole weekend; we're just struggling a lot to find the balance," said Verstappen, who, like the front two, will start the race on medium tyres.

"To be honest, I didn't enjoy one single lap this weekend, just because of the state of the track. I mean the layout is amazing but the grip we are experiencing I don't think is nice. I know it's the same for everyone but for me personally, it's just not enjoyable to drive.

"We'll see [on Sunday] what we can do. It's not so easy to follow here but if we have good pace then, for sure, we'll put the pressure on."

Max Verstappen's title challenge was blown slightly off course as a deleted lap time handed pole position at the Portuguese Grand Prix to Valtteri Bottas.

The Red Bull driver was victorious last time out at Imola and his team again looked to have the best pace in Portimao ahead of qualifying.

But Verstappen complained of a lack of straight-line speed in Q1 and struggled with grip throughout amid windy conditions on the Algarve.

And a correction to avoid a crash at Turn 4 saw a lap that would have been the fastest of Q3 chalked off for exceeding track limits, and he could not replicate it on his sole flying lap that did count.

It meant Bottas claimed pole with a time of one minute and 18.348 seconds, with Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton denied a 100th career pole as he took second, missing out by just 0.007secs.

Verstappen, whose disqualified lap was a 1:18.209, conceded he has found little joy out of the challenge presented by the Algarve International Circuit.

"Whole qualifying was very difficult to drive, was struggling with grip," he said in the post-session interviews. 

"I was quite confident I could do another good lap, [but a] car in front in the last corners disturbs you.

"It's of course not ideal, we'll try to fight them [Mercedes] in the race and see what we can do. Hopefully everything stabilises, up until now it's not been a lot of fun to drive here."

Bottas' emotions were a marked contrast, the Finn left unsurprisingly satisfied with the 17th pole position of his career.

"Feels like it's been a while. It's been a weak point for me in the first two races, getting the tyres to work," said Bottas. 

"The team have been working hard all weekend and we have a good position for tomorrow.

"Starting with the medium tyre tomorrow is good, and it opens up opportunities that we can go as long as we want in the first stint.

Hamilton added: "A great job by Valtteri and our teams for us both to be on the front row, it was not expected. We have to be happy for that, it was not the perfect lap but I gave it everything.

"You can never be satisfied, we exist to keep moving forward but I'm happy with what we're doing and the steps we're taking."

The Red Bulls were far from the only ones to struggle with the wind, McLaren's Daniel Ricciardo failing to make it out of Q1, he will start 16th.

But there was better news for Sebastian Vettel, who made it through to Q3 for the first time since joining Aston Martin.

Vettel will start 10th in a race that will provide plenty of intrigue after an unanticipated shakeup at the front, with both Red Bulls behind an all-Mercedes front row but expected to have better race pace.

Sergio Perez, who will start fourth, told Sky Sports: "I never really got on top of the car in this session, I lacked a bit getting into a rhythm.

"Not really everything worked but at least we have a good starting position, our race pace seems to be better."

If that proves to be the case, it will set the stage for a fascinating duel on Sunday.

PROVISIONAL CLASSIFICATION

1. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) 1:18.348
2. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) +0.007s
3. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.398s
4. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) +0.542s
5. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) +0.691s
6. Esteban Ocon (Alpine) +0.694s
7. Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.768s
8. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.958s
9. Pierre Gasly (AlphaTauri) +1.127s
10. Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin) +1.311s

Max Verstappen claimed victory at a remarkable Emilia Romagna Grand Prix where Lewis Hamilton twice sustained damage and a crash involving Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas prompted a red flag.

An epic race encouraged optimism for a genuine title tussle in Formula One in 2021, with drama right from the outset and Hamilton fighting hard to rescue a superb second-placed finish.

The defending champion had started from pole, with Verstappen qualifying in third, behind Red Bull colleague Sergio Perez.

But Verstappen claimed the lead from Turn One in the rain at Imola, racing up alongside Hamilton and forcing his championship rival wide, where he sustained right wing damage.

While chaos ensued behind them, Hamilton held off Charles Leclerc to ensure he remained the biggest threat to Verstappen, with a tactical battle briefly allowed to develop.

Verstappen pitted first on lap 28, with Hamilton following a lap later and coming out behind the Dutchman following a slow stop.

But a manic spell then shook up the race again. First, Hamilton ran off into a gravel trap and desperately sought to reverse back onto the track.

The Briton was limping back to the pit lane a lap down under a shower of sparks, emitted by his Silver Arrow, when a further incident brought out the safety car.

Bottas collided with Mercedes prospect George Russell, driving for Williams, and both cars crashed in spectacular fashion, with the drivers emerging from the wreckage to angrily blame one another over the team radio.

The red flag soon followed, with wreckage spread across the track and a 30-minute suspension required, giving Hamilton time to regroup.

He resumed from ninth, able to unlap himself, with Verstappen forced to build a healthy lead again from Lando Norris after a slightly nervy restart.

Verstappen had retired at each of the three Italian races in 2020 but avoided a similar fate this time and the focus in the closing stages was instead on Hamilton's progress.

The Mercedes man picked off his opponents one by one, eventually streaking past Leclerc to move into position for a podium place once more.

Only Norris in the McLaren stood between Hamilton and a phenomenal P2 and he patiently chased down his compatriot to limit the damage and somehow emerge from this race a point ahead of Verstappen.

'AN UNFORTUNATE INCIDENT'

As the race got back underway following his crash, Russell posted on Twitter: "Thanks for all the messages. I'm fine, just disappointed.

"At the end of the day, it's an unfortunate incident. You're entitled to defend your position. But at 330kph, you have to respect the speed and the conditions when doing so. Gutted for the team. They deserved more today."

That was the second crash that ruled a driver out, with Nicholas Latifi earlier colliding with Nikita Mazepin to almost instantly exit the grand prix.

The subsequent safety car brought its own share of incident – Perez hit with a 10-second penalty after running wide and overtaking two cars to recover fourth.

Mick Schumacher went into a wall under the safety car, meanwhile, and lost his front wing.

TONE SET BEFORE THE START

The weather was always likely to cause havoc and the drivers took to the track to test their tyres ahead of the race. Even that did not go smoothly.

Fernando Alonso crashed into the wall, while the brakes on the Aston Martin cars caught fire.

That issue meant Sebastian Vettel had to start from the pitlane, and he was later given a 10-second stop/go penalty, too, for failing to have his wheels fitted in time.

Bottas sustained a puncture on his way to the grid and then Leclerc span on the formation lap. It was one of those days.

Lewis Hamilton felt he had got all he could out of his Mercedes as Max Verstappen stormed to an impressive pole position for the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix.

Red Bull driver Verstappen finished 0.388 seconds clear of Mercedes rival and defending world champion Hamilton in qualifying on Saturday.

Valtteri Bottas was 0.589s back in third with Charles Leclerc taking an impressive fourth for Ferrari.

Verstappen had previously topped every practice session in Sakhir, a circuit where he is due a change of luck having retired there four times – more than at any other track in his Formula One career.

His dominant start to the campaign has fans dreaming of a competitive 2021 season after Hamilton was in a class of his own in winning a seventh world title last year.

"We have already had a great week of testing," Verstappen said.

"There are no guarantees but it's been great so far coming back for the race week. The car has been working really well - really enjoyable to drive.

"With the wind conditions changing, it's not easy to change the set-up of the car for every session but it all worked out perfectly in qualifying and I'm really happy with pole position.

"My first lap in Q3 wasn't amazing so I knew there was more in it – you never know how much - but finally the balance was there and you can push a little bit more. 

"You have to be careful not to overheat the rear tyres but where it mattered we could perform. The car has been steady on the short and long runs - we have a good car."

Hamilton felt grid spots of second and third were solid accomplishments for Mercedes after their struggles in pre-season testing.

The Briton said: "Amazing [to have competition]. Congratulations to Max. He did such a great job, so fast on that last lap.

"I absolutely gave it everything I had but unfortunately it was not good enough. There is always more but it was the best I could do that is for sure and I got absolutely everything I could from the car.

"We did a really good job from testing to come here - everyone in the factory has done an amazing job. 

"To be that close, closer to the Red Bulls [is good] considering in testing we thought we would be further behind."

There was some disappointment for Red Bull when Sergio Perez was unable to reach Q3 as he tried to reach the shoot-out on medium tyres. He will start 11th.

It means Hamilton and Bottas will, as they did for much of last season when Alex Albon struggled, have a strategic numerical advantage at the front as they battle Verstappen.

Bottas said: "Anything is possible and we can only aim for Sunday. We have two cars in the mix at the front with Max, so we'll see.

"The practice this morning wasn't easy, I had a couple of issues with balance.

"It was a bit better this evening. We used two sets of soft tyres in Q2 so in Q3, I only had one set of tyres, so it wasn't easy to compete with Max and Lewis."

Verstappen was just 0.023s ahead of Hamilton after the first runs of Q3, and then had to respond when his rival went fastest with his second attempt.

The Dutchman produced a brilliant answer, though, comfortably taking pole as he looks to win two straight races for the first time in his F1 career, having triumphed in the last race of 2020.

Pierre Gasly was fifth ahead of Daniel Ricciardo for his new team McLaren. Lando Norris, Carlos Sainz, the returning Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll rounded out the top 10.

Sebastian Vettel had a frustrating first competitive outing for Aston Martin, as he and Esteban Ocon were eliminated in Q1, not helped by yellow flags towards the end of the session.

Ocon was 16th with Vettel in 18th, just one place ahead of Mick Schumacher on his F1 debut as the two Haas cars finished on the back row.

Hamilton has won the last two editions of the Bahrain Grand Prix, but no driver has ever recorded three straight victories at the event.

PROVISIONAL CLASSIFICATION

1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 1:28.997
2. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) +0.388s
3. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) +0.589s
4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.681s
5. Pierre Gasly (AlphaTauri) +0.812s
6. Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren) +0.930s
7. Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.977s
8. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) +1.218s
9. Fernando Alonso (Alpine) +1.252s
10. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +1.604s

Valtteri Bottas was left "puzzled" by Mercedes' "undriveable" W12 as Max Verstappen set the pace in both practice sessions at the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix on Friday 

Red Bull driver Verstappen topped the timesheets ahead of Mercedes' Bottas in FP1 and McLaren's Lando Norris in FP2 in Sakhir.

Seven-time Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton was fourth and third respectively after team principal Toto Wolff said the best the Silver Arrows could hope for would be to match Red Bull's pace.

Bottas said of Mercedes' new car on the eve of qualifying for the first race of 2021: "The last long run we did was pretty inconsistent, and I couldn't really put any laps together, and the car, as I said, felt undriveable at times.

"A bit puzzled, but it's Friday and that's why we practice."

Dutchman Verstappen, who clocked a quickest lap of one minute, 30.847 seconds, knows Red Bull must build on an encouraging start when it really matters.

He said: "I was really happy but tomorrow is again a different day, even more windy, which with these cars is quite more tricky, so again we'll have to try and be on it, but again, a good start to the weekend,

"I was also really [happy] before, but of course, now we have to show what we can do in qualifying."

The drivers had to contend with a sandstorm in practice and face more testing conditions over the weekend, with high winds and temperatures of up to 38 degrees Celsius forecast.

Verstappen added: "Of course, with the heat, it's not easy to find a really good balance around the whole lap. I think it's a positive day. 

"There are still things to look into what we can look better for tomorrow, but again, also tomorrow, I think it's going to be even more windy so that will be even more difficult to drive.

"That's the same for everyone, so we'll see what happens."

Lewis Hamilton was well off the pace as Mercedes were jolted by their "poor start" to testing ahead of the new Formula One season.

Gearbox trouble meant Valtteri Bottas could only complete six laps in the morning in Bahrain, before team-mate Hamilton had a clearer run and ran through 42 laps in the afternoon.

However, reigning drivers' champion Hamilton was only 10th-fastest on the day, with Red Bull's Max Verstappen topping the time sheets, while Bottas was the slowest of all the 17 drivers involved.

Mercedes' trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin declared: "It's been a poor start to the season from us.

"Once we got running it was clear we didn't have the car in the right balance window and, while we made some progress during the day, we're not happy with how the car is performing and it's pretty clear we have some work to do."

The Mercedes W12 is the car with which the team hope to land an eighth consecutive constructors' title, while Hamilton will be chasing a fifth successive drivers' championship and a record eighth overall.

Hamilton said: "Today definitely wasn't the cleanest of days that we've had, but these things are sent to try us.

"Everyone has worked extremely hard to get us here. We had that mishap in the morning which was very unfortunate for Valtteri in terms of losing time on track and the team is working hard to try and understand what that was.

"I think they did a great job to turn the car around. The second session wasn't without its challenges, but we exist to find solutions to the problems we're faced with."

Hamilton was affected by a sandstorm and said Mercedes would look to "take the positives" from their shaky day, with two more days of testing to come.

Positives were not immediately obvious, and Bottas said: "In recent years, things have been pretty much bulletproof so it's not a familiar experience."

However, the Finn added on the team's website: "I am confident we can recover and I’m looking forward to two good days over the weekend."

As well as testing, Bahrain will host the opening grand prix of the Formula One season, with that race scheduled for March 28.

George Russell has no intention of "hassling" Mercedes over his future as he focuses on trying to get the most out of a new-look Williams car in 2021.  

The British driver is heading into the final year of his contract with Williams, where he will once again work alongside Nicholas Latifi for the season.  

It will be a third year for Russell with the team, though he did step in to drive for Mercedes - having previously been part of their junior driver programme - at the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix, replacing Lewis Hamilton after the seven-time world champion tested positive for COVID-19. 

His performance in the race - he was in front for the majority before a slow puncture forced him to settle for ninth place - led to speculation over a permanent switch, but Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas have remained together.  

While a move could still happen at some stage further down the line, Russell is relaxed over his standing within Mercedes.  

"Mercedes and Toto have always had my back and believed in me from day one. When they believe the time is right, the time will be right," he told Sky Sports at the launch of Williams' FW43B car.  

"I'm not hassling them, I’m just going out there and doing my job on the track. What comes in the future will come.  

"Obviously I had a great opportunity in Bahrain last year, but for now we will focus on the job here at Williams for this season and trying to get the most out of it."

In a somewhat surprising move, Hamilton only agreed to a one-year extension earlier this year, committing him to a ninth season with Mercedes.

Bottas' deal runs "at last until the end of 2021", per the team's statement when the Finn's future was revealed last August, so Russell could potentially be considered to replace either driver in 2022.

"Every driver wants to put themselves against the best," he said when asked if forming a partnership with Hamilton appealed to him.

"I believe in myself and Lewis is the benchmark at the moment, but equally you have a lot of fantastic drivers out there who might not have the same CV as Lewis.  

"Max [Verstappen], Charles [Leclerc], Lewis – they are all on the same level. Putting yourself against one of those three would be great for any driver."

Williams - now owned by Dorilton Capital - unveiled a new blue, white and yellow livery on Friday that takes inspiration from the team's successful cars in the 1980s and 1990s.

Toto Wolff admitted Max Verstappen is a driver who will be "on everybody's radar" but has vowed Mercedes will not rush to seduce the Red Bull star.

Mercedes team principal Wolff will be aware that reports have linked Verstappen with a possible future move to the Silver Arrows, possibly as a long-term replacement for Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton.

For now, though, Hamilton is going nowhere, having signed a contract for the upcoming 2021 season, and the British driver may yet remain for years to come.

After landing a seventh drivers' title last year to match Michael Schumacher's F1 record, there is no driver that Mercedes would take above Hamilton in the present time.

Wolff said: "The symbiosis that we have in the relationship, it's always that we have a mutual understanding of what we want to do in the future. That will be also the case in the discussions with Lewis going forward.

"Max is certainly an outstanding young driver that will be on everybody's radar in the future, but we are not flirting outside before we have a clear understanding with our two drivers."

Verstappen has finished third in the championship in each of the last two seasons, with the 23-year-old winning races at Silverstone and Abu Dhabi during the 2020 campaign.

He tallied 214 points to finish just nine points behind Mercedes' runner-up Valtteri Bottas in the championship.

Quoted widely after Mercedes unveiled their new W12 car on Tuesday, Wolff underlined how Mercedes are not blinkered about the team's future and the potential for a change of direction.

Bottas is also due to reach the end of his contract after the new campaign, meaning Mercedes currently have flexibility should they wish to reshape their driver line-up for 2022 and beyond.

"Our first discussions are going to be with Valtteri and Lewis in respecting our values, integrity and loyalty - but on the other side the young drivers are the future," Wolff said.

"Therefore we need to consider how we want to set ourselves up for the years beyond."