70th Anniversary Grand Prix – Free Practice 3: Tire Management and Mercedes Stroll

For this final free practice session of the 70th Anniversary GP, conditions are hot and sunny.

Behind the high summer temperatures, the wind is very present at this former military airfield, posing a real challenge for the single-seaters.

The atmosphere is also heated between the teams regarding the FIA’s decision concerning Racing Point. Complaints are flooding in, and the legal battle is in full swing.

On the track, the main theater of the championship, the final practice sessions are beginning. The stakes are high to continue understanding the soft tires and the very high pressures mandated by Pirelli.

Sebastian Vettel, 14th in FP2, is the first to take to the asphalt. The German needs to drive following the failure of his Ferrari during previous testing. Ferrari informs the race management that Leclerc’s engine, like Vettel’s, has been changed to eliminate any risk of future breakdowns.

In line with the previous sessions, the drivers are once again opting for the red sidewall tires to maximize the availability of hard and medium compounds for Sunday’s race.

The soft tires, over-inflated at Pirelli’s request, seem to be unsuitable for the drivers both in terms of pace and strategy.

During the first quarter-hour, the single-seaters are scarce on the track, with tire conservation at the heart of the discussions. Nobody seems to want to “waste” the yellow tires, which will probably be used for qualifying and obviously for the race. Let’s remember that the race will require two pit stops, providing many strategies for the teams.

First lap very timidly completed by Norris on red tires in 1:29.236, five seconds off the circuit record set last week by Hamilton. After twenty minutes of the session, only the Ferraris and McLarens are on track, improving the provisional best time by a few tenths with each lap. The Ferraris are the first to test the yellow tires during this session. On his first flying lap, Stroll sets a new benchmark at 1:28.202 before being overtaken by Pierre Gasly in 1:28.040.

The Mercedes cars enter the track midway through the session and remind everyone they are in a different rhythm, with Bottas on red tires over half a second ahead of the Frenchman’s AlphaTauri. Verstappen manages to place himself two-tenths behind the Germans, temporarily securing the third fastest time. The Dutchman seems to be the only one capable of challenging the Mercedes drivers once again.

Twenty minutes before the end of the session, Hülkenberg achieves a good time, four-tenths off Hamilton’s benchmark. He is half a second ahead of his teammate, confirming his growing confidence in his car. Norris shows up by taking the second time with 1:27.202, five-tenths off Bottas’ time of 1:26.784.

The pace on track is increasing significantly, and positions are changing with each lap.

Ocon secures the fifth-fastest time, beating Verstappen’s Red Bull by two-tenths, while Leclerc comes close to the podium in terms of times.

At the back of the standings, Ricciardo is surprisingly battling with the Haas, Williams, and Alfa Romeo. The Australian is more than two seconds off the reference time ten minutes before the end of the session, despite having secured the third fastest time during Free Practice 2. At the end of the session, the Racing Points climb up the leaderboard with Hülkenberg and Stroll taking fourth and fifth places, respectively.