Hamilton favoured in Japan Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton dominated practice for the Japanese Grand Prix on Friday, an early indication that the Formula One championship leader will be tough to beat in Sunday’s race. After leading the morning practice, Hamilton clocked a time of one minute, 28.217 seconds in Friday’s second practice session, finishing 0.461 seconds ahead of Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas. Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel was third fastest. With five races to go, Hamilton would move a step closer to winning a fifth world championship with a win in Suzuka, a race he has dominated in recent years. Hamilton has won five of the last six Formula One races and three of the last four at the Japanese Grand Prix. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen was fourth followed by Vettel’s Ferrari teammate Kimi Raikkonen in fifth. Verstappen’s teammate Daniel Ricciardo was slowest of the drivers from the top three teams, 0.015 behind Raikkonen.