Turkish Grand Prix LIVE: Latest Formula 1 updates

McLaren’s Lando Norris has been telling Sky Sports about the similarities in weather conditions to Russia last time out, but doubts a strong finishing position is on the cards.

“There’s things we’ve learned which we can bring to now, but it’s not exactly the same,” the 21-year-old said. “I don’t think we have as much pace as we did two weeks ago. Even in these conditions, with this track layout, it’s going to be tricky for us.

After Formula 1’s We Race As One message, the Turkish national anthem is currently being sung by a performer, and honestly, you’ve never seen more obvious miming in your entire life.

The drivers stand staring awkwardly but the crowd goes wild!

Alpine team principal Marcin Budkowski has been telling Sky Sports about his team’s differing strategies with their two cars in Turkey.

“Honestly, you can’t make predictions in such a race,” the Pole said. “It doesn’t look like it’s going to dry, so it’s going to be a difficult call. Fernando [Alonso] drove very well yesterday, he’s a clever guy and so opportunities are there.

“Starting fifth is a good position for us. Chances are we’ll be more traditional with Fernando in fifth, and take more risks with Esteban [Ocon] starting P12.”

Christian Horner has been talking to Sky Sports about how the damp track can bring the field closer together.

“It’s really interesting conditions, it’s going to be down to the drivers and getting the calls right on the pitwall,” the Red Bull team principal said. “The rain is a great equaliser. It’s equally wet across both sides of the grid, so I’m hoping it’s pretty even.

Asked whether he had spoken to sister team Alpha Tauri to tell them have Pierre Gasly block Lewis Hamilton on his way through, Horner coyly responded: “Of course we would never say anything like that! We have to focus on our race, and I’m sure Valtteri has a focus as well. Lewis is going to be a big factor in this race, so we just have to get on with and enjoy it.”

Valtteri Bottas has been talking up his chances of winning the race, and his belief comes from the consistency he has felt in his Mercedes machinery.

“It’s a good chance for the win,” he told Sky Sports. “It seems like every race now it’s raining. What gives me confidence is the car has been feeling good in any condition this weekend.”

Charles Leclerc, Pierre Gasly and Fernando Alonso all put in superb performances in qualifying and will start the race third, fourth and fifth respectively.

That puts them directly behind Max Verstappen, first of all, but also means they will be blocking Lewis Hamilton if the Briton is able to make his way towards the front from eleventh.

All three will be running their own races and aiming for the podium, but battling with either title contender could have enormous ramifications for which driver ultimately takes the crown.

The sky at Istanbul Park is covered in an intensely thick level of dark grey cloud which suggests we won’t be seeing the sunshine at any point during this race.

That means that the surface of the circuit will struggle to dry out quickly and it could mean a late switch to dry tyres is necessary.

If that is the case, timing will be crucial and the drivers who can read the changing conditions best will be the ones who make a success of their race.

The pitlane is open and drivers are tip-toeing their way around the circuit as they line up in grid order.

All cars are currently on intermediate tyres and the spray kicked up by Max Verstappen’s Red Bull is a sure-fire indication that there is no chance of starting on dry tyres.

Valtteri Bottas has a couple of twitchy moments on his tour around the track, and the start is going to be immensely difficult for all 20 cars here.

It’s not only Hamilton who will be looking to make significant gains right from the start.

Daniel Ricciardo was knocked out in Q1 on Saturday after timing his final run badly and has taken an engine penalty accordingly, meaning he will start from the very back of the pack, while Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz also starts from the rear of the grid after taking a full engine change ahead of this Grand Prix.

Both drivers will still be aiming to reach the top ten in order to score points, but overtaking the slower cars in treacherous conditions could prove very tricky indeed.

The Istanbul Park circuit is currently damp after consistent showers throughout the morning, and we saw how the changeable conditions caused significant problems for all drivers in yesterday afternoon’s session.

We already have a shaken up grid order, here, and a moist track could catch plenty of cars out into the heavy braking zone of turn 1.