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F1 start time: What time does the Russian Grand Prix start?

Lewis Hamilton claimed his 96th Formula 1 career pole position for the Russian Grand Prix ahead of Red Bull's Max Verstappen. Here's how and when you can watch the race

In a hectic qualifying at the Sochi Autodrom, Hamilton secured pole position having only just made it into Q3 after seeing his initial Q2 lap deleted for exceeding track limits while a red flag for Sebastian Vettel's crash cut short his second effort.

It meant Hamilton and a host of F1 rivals had to scamper around a rushed out-lap to start their final Q2 laps before the clock timed out on the session, with the Mercedes driver starting his lap with one second remaining.

The late switch also forced Hamilton onto the soft tyres in Q2, meaning he will start the Russian GP on the softest compound compared to main rivals Verstappen and Valtteri Bottas on the mediums.

Verstappen has split the Mercedes drivers by taking second place on the grid to push Botas back to third place.

Hamilton was also under threat of a rules breach for an incident at Turn 2 during the first segment of qualifying, but avoided a penalty following a hearing with the FIA stewards.

Behind the front three, Sergio Perez impressed to take fourth pace for Racing Point ahead of Renault's Daniel Ricciardo and McLaren's Carlos Sainz Jr.

Esteban Ocon heads up the fourth row for Renault in front of Lando Norris in the other McLaren, while Pierre Gasly in the AlphaTauri outqualified Red Bull's Alexander Albon who was left "confused" by the gap to team-mate Verstappen in qualifying.

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was left frustrated by a qualifying strategy call which contributed to him missing out on Q3, meaning he starts from 11th, ahead of home favourite Daniil Kvyat for AlphaTauri and Racing Point's Lance Stroll.

Following his Q2 crash, Vettel will start from 15th place just behind George Russell for Williams.

When is the F1 Russian Grand Prix?

Date: Sunday 27th September 2020

Start time: 2:10pm local time, 12:10pm BST

How can I watch the Russian GP?

In the United Kingdom, Sky Sports has exclusive live broadcasting rights (excluding the British GP), with the Russian GP race shown live on Sky Sports F1. Pre-race coverage will be starting at 10:30am BST ahead of the race start at 12:10pm BST.

Channel 4 will be showing extended highlights of the race on Sunday evening, starting at 5:30pm BST.

Autosport is running a live text commentary for the Russian GP.

Weather forecast for the Russian GP?

Current weather forecasts predict sunny and warm conditions at the Sochi Autodrom on race day, with bright sunshine throughout to mean a minimal chance of rain. The temperature is expected to be 28 degrees Celsius for the start of the race - four degrees warmer than the temperature for qualifying.

How many laps is the Russian GP?

The race is scheduled to complete 53 laps of the Sochi Autodrom, covering a total race distance of 309.745km.

Russian GP starting grid

Pos Driver Car Gap
1 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1m31.304s
2 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda 0.563s
3 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 0.652s
4 Sergio Perez Racing Point/Mercedes 1.013s
5 Daniel Ricciardo Renault 1.060s
6 Carlos Sainz Jr. McLaren/Renault 1.246s
7 Esteban Ocon Renault 1.320s
8 Lando Norris McLaren/Renault 1.543s
9 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri/Honda 1.696s
10 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1.935s
11 Daniil Kvyat AlphaTauri/Honda 1.945s
12 Lance Stroll Racing Point/Mercedes 2.060s
13 George Russell Williams/Mercedes 2.279s
14 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 2.305s
15 Alexander Albon Red Bull/Honda 1.704s
16 Romain Grosjean Haas/Ferrari 3.288s
17 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 3.290s
18 Kevin Magnussen Haas/Ferrari 3.377s
19 Kimi Raikkonen Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 3.963s
20 Nicholas Latifi Williams/Mercedes 3.762s

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