Australia – Free Practice 3: Hamilton Remains in Control, Vettel-Leclerc Duo Closes In

Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes will indeed be the favorites for the first qualifying session of the season. As on Friday, the Briton tops the standings with a time of 1:22.292, achieved on soft tires. The weather favored such a performance, providing an increasingly abrasive track.

Not long to wait for Saturday’s track action to begin

It’s looking warm and clear out there ☀️#AusGP 🇦🇺 #F1 pic.twitter.com/6piQ0xBR6m

— Formula 1 (@F1) March 16

A battle Hamilton vs the two Ferrari drivers, without Bottas

The favorites switched to qualifying mode in the last quarter-hour of these FP3. Sebastian Vettel temporarily took the lead with his time of 1:22.556. But Hamilton responded, setting the fastest times in sectors 1 and 3, leaving the German driver with the best time in sector 2. The reigning world champion made the effort to stay ahead of the Ferraris, while the gap was narrower on the first runs (40 thousandths of a second between Hamilton and Vettel).

Hamilton’s effort is therefore commendable, while his teammate was somewhat more erratic, with Valtteri Bottas securing only the seventh-fastest time after his best attempt was aborted when he went off into the grass on the penultimate corner. The Finn allowed Vettel and Leclerc to settle into the top 3, with the red cars closing in on the best time at the start of Saturday. This observation applies equally to the German as well as the Monegasque, who was third, less than two-tenths behind his new teammate.

#AusGP 🇦🇺 | FP3 (52/60 min)

Petite erreur de Bottas à la sortie du virage 15 👀

Le finlandais est P6 à plus de 1.1s d’Hamilton.#F1 pic.twitter.com/WtzVVmavfe

— Secteur F1 🏎️🇫🇮 (@Secteur_F1) 16 mars /f1/actualite/23173-australie-essais-libres-2-hamilton-enfonce-le-clou.html

` Haas like last year?`

On the other hand, a surprise for the fourth place, claimed by… Romain Grosjean’s Haas! The French driver benefits not only from Bottas’s failure but also from the two Red Bulls, only 6th with Pierre Gasly, the other Frenchman, and 9th with Max Verstappen, who changed his chassis between FP2 and FP3 without receiving a penalty. But the American team’s performance doesn’t owe anything to anyone, especially as Kevin Magnussen is right behind in fifth place! The duo of drivers will be on the lookout for a very good result during qualifying, hoping to repeat the 2018 performance with a locked third row back then. The performance of this FP3 is a nice reward for the mechanics, who stayed up a good part of the night to fix an oil leak on Grosjean’s car.

Trends emerging for the top 10?

It is also worth noting in these FP3 sessions the strong form of Daniil Kvyat’s Toro Rosso, the Russian being the second Honda-powered car (8th overall), ahead of Verstappen. Renault, on the other hand, has cause for concern with its qualifying simulation, as Daniel Ricciardo took the last spot in the top ten. In short, the top 11 drivers in the standings below are likely to compete for the Q3, not to forget Räikkönen’s Sauber, whose 17th place contrasts with his Friday performances.

On the other hand, it’s hard to imagine a McLaren or a Racing Point in Q3, with Carlos Sainz finishing four-tenths from the top 10, just like Sergio Pérez. A small consolation is that both cars are among the fastest in top speed.

Meanwhile, Williams…

Like yesterday, the bottom of the table is still monopolized by the Grove team. The gap hasn’t changed much, with George Russell finishing the session this time one second and four-tenths behind Lando Norris, the first pursuer. Robert Kubica is once again at the back, after a slight scare at the pit lane entrance. The elimination of both Williams drivers in Q1 is beyond doubt…

Here is the full ranking of these FP3:

Hamilton heads the times in final practice ⏱️

With the @ScuderiaFerrari duo breathing down his neck 👀#AusGP 🇦🇺 #F1 pic.twitter.com/u0OZHRKFe8

— Formula 1 (@F1) 16 mars