Canada – Free Practice 3: Hamilton still on top, Massa surprises!

Let’s go for this last free practice session on the Île Notre-Dame. Several drivers choose to head out right at the start of the session on soft tires.

Alonso greets the crowd at the hairpin while Gutiérrez makes an error at turn 10, without consequence. A few minutes later, the Mexican causes a red flag. He spun at turn 4 and then hit the wall. He exits his car without any apparent problems. The session resumes, 20 minutes after the start. It’s a back-and-forth at the top of the timesheet between the Mercedes and Ferrari, with the Williams just behind.

After 30 minutes, Rosberg is first with a 1:16.120 ahead of Hamilton. Massa is 7 tenths behind the silver duo. Hamilton hit the last curb quite violently before clocking a stunning time of 1:15.610, half a second ahead of his teammate. The Silver Arrows have noticeably picked up speed.

With 15 minutes to go, Hamilton is still ahead of Rosberg, Räikkönen is in third, 0.9 seconds behind the Briton. The drivers will now switch to super-softs to prepare for qualifying. It’s worth noting that the dust on the track caught many drivers out this afternoon, something to watch for tomorrow’s race. Kobayashi is stopped at the hairpin, apparently due to a mechanical problem, meanwhile Massa is wedging himself between the two Mercedes.

End of the session, we have Hamilton with a time of 1:15.610, ahead of a surprising Williams driven by Massa. Rosberg has to settle for third place, half a second behind.