Friday at the Baku Grand Prix delivered a competitive Ferrari, capable of posting the two fastest times of the day, with Lewis Hamilton ahead of Charles Leclerc. This was partly due to a McLaren that was unable to complete its qualifying simulation, making FP3 crucial to understanding the true pace of the teams this weekend in Azerbaijan.
Ferrari finds grip but struggles
Both Ferraris left the garage about fifteen minutes into the session, running soft tires. The goal was to assess grip on a dirty and lightly rubbered-in track. Over the radio, engineers reported that the circuit was noticeably slower, estimating a gap of around five seconds compared to FP2 times.
As expected, grip was limited. Lewis Hamilton avoided pushing too hard but needed multiple corrections in the middle sector, eventually losing control at turn 17 and calling his lap “terrible” over the radio. Leclerc also faced difficulties, particularly when trying to release power out of the tighter corners, where traction was unstable.
Engineers requested feedback on potential front-wing adjustments: Hamilton opted for two clicks, while Leclerc deferred the decision for another attempt. On his next lap, Charles pushed harder to explore the car’s limits. Hamilton, meanwhile, lost the car again in the middle sector, ran wide, and returned to the pits. Leclerc completed his lap but made a mistake in turn 16.
The Monegasque over-rotated, delaying traction and losing time. Overall, however, grip seemed to improve, allowing Leclerc to push closer to the barriers. Wind played a significant role in his error, shifting the car mid-corner. Shortly after, Hamilton completed his lap and moved ahead of his teammate, temporarily placing both Ferraris at the top of the timesheet.
A pit stop followed, including a practice start. Engineers provided constant radio guidance, suggesting adjustments to improve drivability. After two cooldown laps, the SF-25s pushed again. Hamilton encountered traffic in the middle sector and lost time, then risked another mistake in turn 16 as the rear broke loose under acceleration.
The British driver stopped the lap and returned for another start practice, while Leclerc completed his run despite imperfections. His style appeared tense, with many micro-corrections, but he still improved in the final sector where he had previously erred. Sector 1 behavior remained unclear, as the Monegasque had not yet fully mastered it.
Leclerc continues to kiss the barriers
After a short pause, Charles Leclerc returned to the track, while Hamilton waited a few minutes in the garage. Concerns arose about reliability on Charles’ car, and engineers advised him to delay the shift in turn 2. Charles asked for clarification on the severity of the issue and received a somewhat worrying answer from Bozzi: the problem was significant. His lap was uncompetitive, and he described it over the radio as “terrible” before returning to the pits.
Hamilton, on the other hand, experienced no difficulties and fully exploited his SF-25, posting times very close to his teammate before also returning to the pits. Charles Leclerc also hit the left front against the wall entering the section near the Castle, causing a significant impact and requesting a suspension check, but quickly returned for the final run.
Is the medium tire crucial for qualifying?
On the third run, both Ferraris used fresh soft tires again. After the usual warm-up, the drivers went flat-out, but the results were not encouraging. Ferrari continued to lose too much time in sector 1, while the deficit in the middle sector to McLaren was expected. Both suffered from significant oversteer on corner exit, forcing frequent corrections and disrupting lap flow.
The feeling was that the tires were not in the optimal operating window, compounded by wind and traffic that disturbed the SF-25s. Hamilton managed a decent lap on his third attempt, even though the tires were past their peak grip, finishing about two and a half tenths behind Norris. Charles Leclerc struggled to find a clean lap and pushed until the last available minutes.
However, the Monegasque again made a mistake in the middle sector and could not assemble a competitive lap. Ferrari showed good potential but lacked consistency, with setup to refine and too many errors. The priority remains to find a way to better exploit the tires, a goal that was not achieved in this final session before qualifying.
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