The clocks have gone back one whole hour, but you'll have to go back 24 years to find the last Portuguese Grand Prix. A plucky Brit on pole, and another front-row lockout for F1's dominant force. "Já visto!" the locals may cry, but there's plenty of intrigue under the surface.
The teams are short on long-run data, nobody knows what the tyres are going to do, the wind is swirling, the temperatures are dropping, the dirty side of the grid is really dirty, and we've got 66 laps ahead of us. It's the puzzling, promising and no less popular Portimao setting for this afternoon's race. Will there be P for precipitation? 
Another step into the unknown at a new addition to the calendar. If Mugello and Nurburg are anything to go by, we should be in for a fun race. It's Round 12, the Portuguese Grand Prix.
The Grid and The Start
The even-numbered drivers are going to struggle on the scarely used inside tarmac. We could see big gains from Verstappen, Perez and Sainz. Albon will need to make sure his race gets off to a better start than it did in Germany. Leclerc will surely be fighting for all he's worth to defend his terrific P4 grid slot.
It's a 400m run into the quick, single-file turn 1. We've already had track limit excursions and even a crash in Friday practice, so it will be a hairy place to be at lights out, especially on cold tyres.
Hamilton, Bottas and Leclerc all start on the MEDIUM tyre, making life even more difficult.
Tyres and Strategy
After a truncated series of practice sessions, a tricky track surface, and ever-changing weather conditions, it's very difficult to know how the tyres will fare over a race distance. Will we see a graining-induced two stop, or will the tyre management be good enough for the standard one-stop? Will the undercut be neutralised by the slow warm-up? Pirelli are puzzled, and so are we.
There's a bit of variation in the tyres remaining. Mercedes and Leclerc have a new Soft in their back pocket, Verstappen and most of the midfield a new Medium. Tyre choice from outside the top 10 will be crucial. Ocon, Stroll and Kvyat could play themselves into a good position. Vettel is stuck in-between a rock and a hard place having already burnt through the edge of both new Mediums in Q2.
Weather
There's an outside chance of rain, although it's forecast after the race. Nevertheless, it will be overcast, mild, and blustery. Totally different to Friday and Saturday. We've already seen how this can affect balance and tyres. It will be a tricky afternoon for the drivers. Hopefully, not too tricky, Damon.
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Look out! The race starts one hour earlier than normal, just like last week.
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Will it be another Mercedes procession up front, or can Verstappen get involved on lap 1? Leclerc will fight hard to keep his P4, but he'll have the rejuvenated Perez behind him, sniffing for another podium shot. McLaren just want a solid points haul, something Albon probably can't afford. Gasly needs to make up for an anti-climatic Q3, and Ricciardo an uncharacteristic error. Ocon should follow his teammate and challenge the orange cars. Stroll and Vettel need to fight back after being outshone on Saturday. Kvyat, the forgotten man, needs a performance to remember. Russell will be aiming to make progress on lap 1, and hoping not to connect with Kimi again. Grosjean and Magnussen will surely race hard now their futures have been set. Finally, Latifi, bringing up the rear, the best seat in this house, watching it all unfold before his eyes.
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Surprise, a poll! See you in 12 hours
(and I've only just spotted the car flipping at the start from 1995... who is that?!)
Edited by TomNokoe, 25 October 2020 - 10:15.
never mind, I'll leave it in!
, or should I say 
