Imola (Italy) (AFP)

Formula 1 returns to the legendary Italian circuit of Imola for the first time since 2006, the time of a Grand Prix of Emilia-Romagna disputed over two days (Saturday and Sunday) instead of three, and a promised record. to Mercedes.

At the end of this thirteenth out of seventeen rounds, the British team can afford a seventh consecutive constructors' title, one more than Ferrari between 1999 and 2004.

In the standings, the Silver Arrows are 209 points higher than Red Bull.

With 176 lengths ahead on Sunday, they will be sacred.

To prevent it, the Austrian team would have to score 34 points more than its rival.

However, it has only passed it once this season for ... a point!

“You could say that we have a 99% chance of being crowned this weekend but the truth is, I can't get any satisfaction from it until it's done. But I'm very proud that the team is there, ”comments his boss Toto Wolff.

"We never would have imagined."

The drivers' title, on the other hand, will have to wait until the next round in Turkey on November 15 at best.

To secure the crown in Istanbul, it will be enough for the Briton to have 78 steps ahead of his rivals at the end of the GP.

He therefore has to score one point more than Bottas in two races while not conceding sixteen to Verstappen.

Hamilton has won eight out of twelve GPs in 2020!

- Shortened trials -

Mythical name in F1 history, Imola hosted 27 GPs between 1980 and 2006. Finnish veteran Kimi Räikkönen (41 years old, Alfa Romeo) is therefore the only one on the grid to have raced in the premier class on the circuit on which Brazilian Ayrton Senna was killed in 1994, during a nightmarish weekend that also claimed the life of Austrian Roland Ratzenberger.

More recently, in June, the AlphaTauri riders, the French Pierre Gasly and the Russian Daniil Kvyat, did a short practice session there to prepare for the season.

Specificity of this round which was not on the calendar before the novel coronavirus pandemic and which will ultimately be held behind closed doors due to the resurgence of contaminations, its program includes only one and only one free practice session on Saturday at 10:00 a.m. , instead of three from Friday.

Before qualifying on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. and the race on Sunday at 1:10 p.m., the drivers and their teams will only have an hour and a half, instead of four, to familiarize themselves with the track, perfect their settings and define their strategies.

"It puts the team under pressure. You have to get straight to the heart of the matter and learn quickly," said Australian Daniel Ricciardo (Renault).

"You have to be on top right away and not have a reliability problem," added McLaren team principal Andreas Seidl.

It was to be an unprecedented experience, potentially synonymous with surprises, but the paddock got a taste during the Eifel GP, in Germany in early October, where the two sessions on Friday were canceled due to bad weather .

Apart from Ricciardo's 3rd place, the results were hardly surprising: like almost every weekend, pole position and victory went to Mercedes, with Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton respectively.

What's more, on three circuits discovered or rediscovered by F1 this season (Mugello, Nürburgring and Portimao), Hamilton has won each time, to offer last week in Portugal the absolute record of victories in the premier class motorsport: 92, against 91 at Schumacher.

© 2020 AFP