Neither Ferrari nor Mercedes topped a timesheet yesterday, with Red Bull instead stealing a surprising early march on their rivals, as Sebastian Vettel, the championship leader, thinks all three teams are in serious contention here. The third practice session is usually the moment when the Maranello team dial in their setup, but this time Ferrari had to almost completely sit out the last session as rain was intensifying.
Drivers and teams seem to have voted with their feet on the track conditions – after some brief excursions on track, they have all retreated to the pit lane. Nico Hulkenberg set one lap time – 1:36.873 – but that was about it for the first 40 minutes, during which six drivers did not venture out on to the circuit at all – both Ferraris, both Mercedes and both Force Indias. In the last 10 minutes of the practice seesion the rain did ease slightly and Scuderia Ferrari took that as their cue to send both their cars out.
Mercedes also dispatched Valtteri Bottas, with Lewis Hamilton’s car also looking like being prepared. Sebastian then showed how tricky the conditions were even in the championship-leading car with a harmless spin at the hairpin. In the end, Charles Leclerc took his first fastest time in an F1 practice session.
The wet weather could persist for qualifying but race day is more likely to be dry.
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