Lewis
Hamilton will look to continue his charge for a record-equalling seventh Formula One
championship and overtake Michael Schumacher as the driver with the most wins
at this weekend’s Portuguese Grand Prix at the Algarve International Circuit.

Two weeks ago,
Hamilton drew level with the legendary German at the Nurburgring circuit on 91
wins each.

Clear at
the top of the driver’s standings, with a 69-point lead over teammate Valtteri
Bottas in second place after seven wins from 11 races so far, the six-time F1
champion Briton is also closing in on Schumacher’s record of seven World Championships.

For the
organisers, however, the primary focus will be to stay wary of the growing
second wave of the coronavirus pandemic across Europe.

The race,
which is the first to be held in Portugal in 24 years since Jacques Villeneuve’s
victory at Estoril in 1996, will have as many as 27,500 spectators at the
tracks under strictly-controlled conditions, AFP reported.

There is an
obvious concern regarding the number of fans being allowed to attend the race,
with Racing Point’s Canadian driver Lance Stroll, who missed the Eifel Grand
Prix due to illness, testing positive little more than a week ago.

However, Hamilton
winning a record 92nd race and Mercedes bagging a record seventh
constructor’s championship remains a major attraction although the latter is
likely to be delayed until next week’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola.

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While
Hamilton has a simple target for his record, Mercedes need to outscore Red Bull
by 40 points, meaning they will need a perfect performance from their drivers and
a flop from Dutchman Max Verstappen.

Hamilton’s
win will also see him draw level with four-time champion Frenchman Alain Prost
for most Grand Prix race wins in Portugal at three apiece.

Bottas will
be hoping for better fortunes this time around after a power unit failure in
Germany dented his title hopes.

Team boss
Toto Wolff, who this week rejected suggestions that he is planning his own F1
outfit, said Mercedes had identified a “failed electrical component”
as the problem.

Few of the
current field of F1 drivers have raced at the undulating Portimao track apart
from some in junior formula events, but Hamilton has normally impressed with
his ability to learn and shine on new circuits.

Stroll’s
likely return has been supported by his Racing Point boss Otmar Szafnauer as
he, along with all team members, has tested negative ahead of this weekend’s
contest.

“All
members of the team at the Eifel Grand Prix returned to the UK via a private
charter flight and all tested negative upon arrival and again in a pre-event
test for the Portuguese Grand Prix,” said Szafnauer.

Stroll
became the second Racing Point driver to have contracted COVID-19 this year after Sergio Perez, who missed both Silverstone races in July.

In a
statement about the attendance, the Portuguese government said the circuit had
a capacity for 90,000 and fans would be seated with “safe spacing” in
sectors of about 800.

One team
hoping a return to Portugal brings a change in fortunes is likely to be
Williams who won four of the last five races held at Estoril, including 1996
when Villeneuve led team-mate and world champion Damon Hill home in a famous
one-two.

Williams,
under new American ownership following the Williams family’s decision to sell,
are without a point so far this season.