Free Practice 3 – Heidfeld gives hope to BMW

Nick Heidfeld’s BMW-Sauber set the fastest time at the very end of the session in increasingly dry conditions. Rain was present this morning for the free practice 3 at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium.

The McLaren duo, Heikki Kovalainen and Lewis Hamilton, finished second and fourth respectively, only separated by Fernando Alonso (Renault), while the Ferraris only managed the fifth (Felipe Massa) and seventh fastest times (Kimi Räikkönen).

The rain made an appearance this morning, which means the track was wet. The drizzle then accompanied the drivers as they started their installation laps. But the showers intensified, and most of the field preferred to return directly to the pits.

The rain might be a decisive factor for the rest of the weekend. Consequently, the McLarens, Ferraris, and Robert Kubica’s BMW hit the track when it was the wettest around the middle of the session.

With conditions improving minute by minute, the leaders on the timesheet were numerous, such as the two Toro Rosso, the two Red Bull, Nico Rosberg (Williams), and Timo Glock (Toyota).

The latter and the two Williams drivers were the first to equip the smoothest tires with only 25 minutes remaining. They were three seconds faster than the other drivers. This led to a series of fast laps.

The title contenders finally decided to go out ten minutes before the end of the session. Hamilton used the softest tires to go faster. A small off-track excursion at the exit of Les Combes can be credited to him.

Before this incident, Hamilton had posted a very good time that remained the best until the very last minutes. And for good reason, his teammate Kovalainen improved slightly but Heidfeld did better with 1.47.876, just 0.289 seconds ahead of the Finn.

Alonso passes Hamilton on his last lap. Only Massa was left on the track, and he didn’t do better. He finishes fifth.

The Toro Rosso of Sebastian Vettel slots in between the Ferraris and breaks into the top six while Rosberg, Nelson Piquet (Renault), and Mark Webber (Red Bull) complete the top ten behind Räikkönen, in 7th place.

Jenson Button was unable to set a time following a problem on his installation lap which forced him to return to the pits.

Free Practice 3 Results – Belgian GP – September 6, 2008