As Formula 1 returns to Istanbul Park for the first time since 2011, Mercedes power seeks its 200th win and Hamilton is on the hunt for a seventh title. Here are the milestones and records which could be broken at the 2020 Turkish Grand Prix!
THE MILESTONES
The 2020 Turkish Grand Prix will be the 1,031st World Championship Formula 1 race. This will be F1’s first visit to Istanbul Park since 2011. It’ll be the eighth F1 race held at Istanbul Park. Mosport Park, Long Beach and Circuit of the Americas have also hosted eight races.
Race day in Turkey will mark 3,479 days since the last race at Istanbul Park. That’s the fifteenth longest gap between two World Championship F1 races at a circuit.
This will be the first Turkish Grand Prix in which Felipe Massa, Fernando Alonso, Jarno Trulli, Jenson Button, Mark Webber and Rubens Barrichello have not appeared on the grid.
This weekend marks Red Bull’s 300th start in a Formula 1 race since they first entered at the 2005 Australian Grand Prix. However, it will be their 301st appearance. They appeared at the 2005 United States Grand Prix, but neither car started the race.
THE RECORDS TO BREAK
A victory for Lewis Hamilton will see him surpass Michael Schumacher’s record of most wins with a single constructor. Schumacher won 72 times with Ferrari, while Hamilton has won 72 times so far with Mercedes. Next on the list is Sebastian Vettel, who won 38 times with Red Bull. A win would also seal a seventh World Championship victory for Hamilton. Read more: F1 Title Permutations.
If either Mercedes driver wins, or a driver of any other Mercedes-powered car wins, this will be the 200th Grand Prix to be won by a Mercedes-powered car. They will be only the second engine manufacturer to reach the milestone, after Ferrari – who recorded their 200th win at the 2007 Chinese Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton, Valtteri Bottas and Max Verstappen finished in the top three together for the twelfth time at the 2020 Portuguese Grand Prix. If they do so again this weekend, they’ll become the equal second most common podium trio in F1 history, tying with Sebastian Vettel, Fernando Alonso and Mark Webber.
Should he fail to score at the Turkish Grand Prix, George Russell will equal Max Chilton for third in the list of most Grand Prix starts without a point. This weekend will mark Russell’s 35th race start. Only Luca Badoer and Charles Pic entered more races without ever scoring a point. Meanwhile, Nicola Larini and Jonathan Palmer scored points on their 44th and 42nd starts respectively.
If Lewis Hamilton sets the Fastest Lap of the race, this will be the first time that he has set the Fastest Lap at three consecutive races since doing so at the 2014 Italian, Singapore and Japanese Grands Prix.
Alex Albon has failed to score at any of the last three races. Should he fail to score again at the Turkish Grand Prix, this will be the first time that a Red Bull driver has not scored at four successive races since Mark Webber in 2009.
If Kimi Raikkonen, Sebastian Vettel or Lewis Hamilton win the 2020 Turkish Grand Prix they will become the second driver, after Felipe Massa to have taken multiple victories at Istanbul Park. If Vettel wins he will become the second driver to have taken consecutive wins at the circuit.
A pole position for Sebastian Vettel would see him equal Felipe Massa’s record of three pole positions at the Turkish Grand Prix. Meanwhile, pole for Lewis Hamilton would make Istanbul Park the 30th different circuit at which he has taken pole.
Ferrari and Red Bull are currently tied for most pole positions at the Turkish Grand Prix with three apiece. Either team could extend the record this weekend. Meanwhile, if a team other than Ferrari, Red Bull or McLaren take pole, they will become the fourth team to have started the Turkish Grand Prix from the front row of the grid.
A top three finish for Kimi Raikkonen would see him equal Fernando Alonso as the driver with the most podium finishes at the Turkish Grand Prix. The Spaniard finished in the top three on four occasions at Istanbul Park.
Ferrari currently hold the record for most podium finishes at the Turkish Grand Prix. They have finished in the top three on seven occasions. McLaren, currently on six, could surpass that tally this weekend, while Red Bull, on five, could equal the Scuderia’s record.
Brazil leads the way with the most wins for a nation at Istanbul Park. Felipe Massa scored all three of the country’s wins in Turkey. British drivers, currently on two, could equal or surpass that record in 2020.
Mercedes and Ferrari are currently tied as the most successful engine manufacturers in Turkey with three wins apiece. Either team could take the outright record this weekend.
Kevin Magnussen has not scored since the Hungarian Grand Prix. If he fails to score this weekend, he will surpass the longest point-less streak of his Formula 1 career. It would be the eleventh successive race in which he has failed to pick up a point. He failed to score at ten races in a row between the 2016 Spanish and Italian Grands Prix.
