ISTANBUL // If he is true to his word and keeps his feet on the ground this weekend, Lewis Hamilton, winner of last month's Chinese Grand Prix, would do well to swap his race boots for Wellingtons.
The Turkish Grand Prix, billed as the start of the European season despite Istanbul Park being located on the Asian side of the Bosphorus, looks destined to provide Formula One with its first wet race of the season.
The dismally dark grey clouds that hung in the air over the circuit yesterday provided irregular rain and prominent puddles in the paddock.
"I have never been here when it has been wet - I didn't even know it rained here," said Hamilton, wrapped up in his McLaren-Mercedes waterproofs.
The Englishman could have been forgiven for arriving this weekend buoyed by his performance in Shanghai, where his team outsmarted Sebastian Vettel's dominant Red Bull Racing.
Had this weekend's race arrived sooner, perhaps he would have been.
Instead, with three weeks having passed since his golden moment and every team making modifications in the race to improve, the 26-year-old, who won here last year, is refusing to promise a repeat performance.
"Last year was my first win here, so that is great feeling, but coming back is going to be very tough, especially with the conditions," he said.
"Of course you can come from the last race and be very excited and be confident, but I don't have particularly high hopes. I generally don't like to expect too much because if it doesn't work out, you don't have a big come down. I prefer to arrive cautious."
McLaren have made "a number of small modifications" to their set-up ahead of the season's fourth race, but Hamilton is only too aware that the competition have done likewise in the past three weeks of no race activity. And some more than others.
"You have to assume that everybody has moved forward. We had half a second we needed to jump to catch the Red Bulls, but even if we have found that half second, you would imagine they will have found the same or similar," he said. "I hope we can close the gap, but you never know who has improved their car more. You have to be cautious and to look out for Renault, Ferrari and Mercedes - they have also made a step and may have moved closer or past us. Fingers crossed our upgrade is a step forward, but whether it is a big step or a small step, we will need to wait and see."
Fortunately for drivers and spectators alike, Hamilton's performance in China proved that having the quickest car is no longer the sole factor in the quest for success.
Tactics are now more crucial than ever. Vettel had led for the majority of the race in Shanghai, but when he found himself struggling on older tyres with five laps remaining, Hamilton, having pitted for fresh rubber, was able to comfortably pass him to secure his first win in more than eight months.
Vitaly Petrov, the Renault driver, revealed his team have gone from dedicating 20 minutes for discussing strategy last year to spending more than 50 minutes deliberating race plans this season, and teams such as McLaren are likely to dedicate even more.
"At the last race, we didn't win because we had the fastest car, but because we outdid them with strategy," said Hamilton, who pinpointed the eminent Turn Eight as being key to this weekend's set-up.
At 640 metres, the acclaimed eighth corner is the longest bend on the calendar and is regularly cited as a favourite of the drivers.
It combines high speeds - around 270 kph - with sustained gravitational force that means it is also the most demanding corner on both driver and tyre.
"It's great," Hamilton said. "None of the drivers really struggle with it, but you have to compromise your overall set-up of the car just to deal with that one corner. It will be interesting for sure, especially if it stays wet."
The weather forecast ahead of today's free practice is light rain.
gmeenaghan@thenational.ae
Friday's schedule at the Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
GP3 qualifying, 10:15am
Formula 2, practice 11:30am
Formula 1, first practice, 1pm
GP3 qualifying session, 3.10pm
Formula 1 second practice, 5pm
Formula 2 qualifying, 7pm
Directed: Smeep Kang
Produced: Soham Rockstar Entertainment; SKE Production
Cast: Rishi Kapoor, Jimmy Sheirgill, Sunny Singh, Omkar Kapoor, Rajesh Sharma
Rating: Two out of five stars
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Founders: Amira Rashad (CEO), Yusuf Saber (CTO), Mahmoud Sayedahmed (adviser), Reda Bouraoui (adviser)
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In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
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Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
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Founder: Areej Selmi
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Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
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What is a calorie?
A food calorie, or kilocalorie, is a measure of nutritional energy generated from what is consumed.
One calorie, is the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of 1 kilogram of water by 1°C.
A kilocalorie represents a 1,000 true calories of energy.
Energy density figures are often quoted as calories per serving, with one gram of fat in food containing nine calories, and a gram of protein or carbohydrate providing about four.
Alcohol contains about seven calories a gram.
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Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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Race card
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 1,600m
5.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m
6pm: Arabian Triple Crown Round-1 Listed (PA) Dh230,000 (T) 1,600m
6.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,400m
7pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,200m
7.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 (T) 2,400m
West Asia Premiership
Dubai Hurricanes 58-10 Dubai Knights Eagles
Dubai Tigers 5-39 Bahrain
Jebel Ali Dragons 16-56 Abu Dhabi Harlequins
England-South Africa Test series
1st Test England win by 211 runs at Lord's, London
2nd Test South Africa win by 340 runs at Trent Bridge, Nottingham
3rd Test July 27-31 at The Oval, London
4th Test August 4-8 at Old Trafford, Manchester
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ENGLAND TEAM
England (15-1)
George Furbank; Jonny May, Manu Tuilagi, Owen Farrell (capt), Elliot Daly; George Ford, Ben Youngs; Tom Curry, Sam Underhill, Courtney Lawes; Charlie Ewels, Maro Itoje; Kyle Sinckler, Jamie George, Joe Marler
Replacements: Luke Cowan-Dickie, Ellis Genge, Will Stuart, George Kruis, Lewis Ludlam, Willi Heinz, Ollie Devoto, Jonathan Joseph
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-finals, first leg
Liverpool v Roma
When: April 24, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Anfield, Liverpool
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 2, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
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Based: Dubai, UAE
Founded: 2014
Number of employees: 36
Sector: Logistics
Raised: $2.5 million
Investors: DP World, Prime Venture Partners and family offices in Saudi Arabia and the UAE
10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
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- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
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Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz