Check out Sky Sports F1’s live schedule for the third race of the 2021 season as Formula 1 makes its way to the Portimao roller coaster. Race on Sunday at 3 p.m. with setup from 1.30 p.m.
Last updated: 05/01/21 7:42 PM
Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen will renew their on-track rivalry at the Portuguese GP this weekend – and you can only watch all the Portimao action live on Sky Sports F1.
After the respective star drivers from Mercedes and Red Bull were separated by a single point at the top of the championship with one race win after two dramatic races in Bahrain and Imola, the stage was set for another thriller in Portugal, the first of five races in seven weeks if the 2021 season accelerates.
The key times are:
- The race starts on Sunday at 3 p.m. with preparation from 1.30 p.m.
1:33 Lewis Hamilton has endorsed the social media boycott against online hatred and believes social media platforms haven’t done enough to combat abuse
Lewis Hamilton has endorsed the social media boycott against online hatred and believes social media platforms haven’t done enough to combat abuse
F1 is back on the Portimao roller coaster
F1 is back in Portugal and the Algarve International Circuit – colloquially known as Portimao, the nearby port city – for the second time in half a year after a successful and popular debut for the venue last fall.
The country hadn’t hosted a Grand Prix since 1996, but Portimao took the opportunity to fill one of the spots on the heavily revised 2020 calendar as the track had long been aimed at an F1 race.
The 2.9-mile lap, which has been compared to a “roller coaster” due to its undulations and twists, quickly turned out to be difficult for the drivers to master.
An additional challenge in last year’s race was a newly laid track surface, which initially offered little grip and caused numerous errors in the drivers through training.
Light rain showers at the beginning of the race intensified the search for grip and led to one of the most extraordinary opening laps of 2020, when the then McLaren driver Carlos Sainz moved up from seventh on the grid to second. He took the lead a lap later, but Sainz was soon mixed back when Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas and eventually Hamilton took control of the process.
Hamilton won the race to break the record for most wins in F1.
When is the Portuguese GP live on Sky F1?
Sunday
1.30 p.m .: Grand Prix Sunday
3 p.m .: THE PORTUGUESE GRAND PRIX
5 p.m .: checkered flag
6 p.m .: Ted’s notebook
7 p.m .: racing highlights
PLUS: Check out IndyCar’s double headers weekend
The racing action from the USA will also take place in Sky Sports F1. Rounds three and four of the new IndyCar season will take place over one weekend at Texas Motor Speedway, the first oval of 2021. Experience both races live at both ends of Sunday in Great Britain.
Sunday
12 noon: Genesys 300
10 p.m .: XPEL 375