Hamilton Vows Maximum Attack from 11th on the Grid in Turkey

Lewis Hamilton. (Reuters)
Lewis Hamilton. (Reuters)
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Hamilton Vows Maximum Attack from 11th on the Grid in Turkey

Lewis Hamilton. (Reuters)
Lewis Hamilton. (Reuters)

Formula One championship leader Lewis Hamilton promised "maximum attack" in Sunday's Turkish Grand Prix and would not rule out winning from 11th on the grid.

The Mercedes driver was quickest in qualifying at Istanbul Park but a 10-place penalty for exceeding his season's engine allocation, a strategic move, left the Briton with plenty of overtaking to do in the race.

Hamilton won in Turkey last year, in wet and slippery conditions, after starting sixth.

He also stood out in his pre-F1 days when he roared back from 19th to second in a GP2 race in the dry in 2006.

This time he risks losing his championship lead unless he finishes ahead of Red Bull's Max Verstappen, who is two points adrift with seven races to go and lines up on the front row with Mercedes' Valtteri Bottas on pole.

"I was third already at turn one last year so that made a bit of a difference," said Hamilton, now chasing a record eighth title.

"It's a much different weekend, a much different track grip, so we're faced with different circumstances this weekend," he added.

"My eyes are still solely set on winning the race. It's going to be very hard, from 11th, but not impossible ... so just staying on my toes and making sure that we deliver maximum attack tomorrow."

Hamilton has three other Red Bull drivers ahead of him on the grid, with Verstappen's Mexican team mate Sergio Perez on the third row while Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda, from Red Bull's sister team AlphaTauri, are fourth and ninth.

McLaren's Lando Norris, who lines up seventh, said he expected to stay ahead of Hamilton for only a couple of laps.

"I'm not going to say I'm going to beat him because I'm not," said the 21-year-old, who started on pole in Russia and nearly won.

Hamilton said he would just take it one step at a time, and had to get through the opening lap safely first from his midfield position.

"If I can be higher up early on, then great. I've got to stay out of trouble of course, and that will be probably my priority initially, and then see if it's possible to pick them off one by one."



Cristiano Ronaldo Is Almost Certain He Won’t Play at Club World Cup

 Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo smiles in front of a Bayern Munich club logo during a training session ahead of the Nations League soccer final match between Spain and Portugal in Munich, Germany, Saturday, June 7, 2025. (AP)
Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo smiles in front of a Bayern Munich club logo during a training session ahead of the Nations League soccer final match between Spain and Portugal in Munich, Germany, Saturday, June 7, 2025. (AP)
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Cristiano Ronaldo Is Almost Certain He Won’t Play at Club World Cup

 Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo smiles in front of a Bayern Munich club logo during a training session ahead of the Nations League soccer final match between Spain and Portugal in Munich, Germany, Saturday, June 7, 2025. (AP)
Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo smiles in front of a Bayern Munich club logo during a training session ahead of the Nations League soccer final match between Spain and Portugal in Munich, Germany, Saturday, June 7, 2025. (AP)

Cristiano Ronaldo says he's almost certain he will not be playing at the Club World Cup, dealing a blow to FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s hopes of having one of soccer’s biggest attractions at the tournament.

The Portugal captain confirmed Saturday that he received “quite a few” offers from participating clubs to play for them at the tournament starting June 14, but had decided against accepting any of them.

“Some things make sense to talk about, other things don’t, and, as a person says, you can’t take part in everything,” Ronaldo said. “You have to think about the short, medium and long term. It’s a decision practically made on my part not to go to the Club World Cup, but I’ve had quite a few invitations to go.”

The 40-year-old soccer legend was speaking in Munich a day before Portugal’s Nations League final against Spain.

Infantino had suggested last month that Ronaldo, who is still contracted to Saudi team Al-Nassr until the end of June, could switch to one of the 32 clubs taking part in the Club World Cup because of a unique transfer window created for the tournament.

Ronaldo did little to quell that speculation when he posted “this chapter is over” after Al-Nassr's last Saudi Pro League game of the season.

He was linked with several Club World Cup participants, including Brazil’s Palmeiras.

A switch to Al-Nassr’s crosstown rival Al-Hilal – the one Saudi club that qualified – was also mooted as a potential solution to having Ronaldo play at the tournament, where his great rival Lionel Messi will be playing with Inter Miami.

FIFA would have welcomed the boost that Ronaldo’s presence could provide for ticket sales, though such a switch to a bitter local rival for a short period would be unthinkable for players in Europe’s leagues.

Ronaldo fired Portugal into the Nations League final on Wednesday with a 2-1 win over host nation Germany.

His winning goal was his record-extending 137th for Portugal. If he plays Sunday, he will make his record-extending 221st national team appearance.