La Formula 1 takes to the track again for the third and final free practice session of the Austrian GP. So all the teams are aiming to put together thebetter setup for qualifying and the race. And you Fantasy manager you have already assessed that pilots to deploy in the team or are you waiting for the results of these FP3? In case you need a hand, here is the situation after the FP3 of the Austrian GP which ended with the Norris best time ahead of teammate Piastri and Verstappen.
New session but same script: McLaren dominates and the others chase
By now practically all the plans have been defined and so the drivers are waiting a bit to go out on the track. In fact, a quarter of an hour into the session only three quarters of the drivers are already lapping. We immediately see the Norris' McLaren leading the way ahead of his teammate and the two Red Bull drivers (with Verstappen being the only top team with hards). But the times are still about 5 tenths from yesterday's.
The Ferrari manages to keep up with the leaders but with a little more difficulty, especially in turn one where both Hamilton and Leclerc were protagonists of a long one. In particular Hamilton manages to climb in second position 3 tenths from Norris. A position that will then be taken away from him by Leclerc. Also The Mercedes immediately find confidence as soon as they get off with Russell and Antonelli who, twenty minutes from the end, are candidates as Lando's closest pursuers.
The only one to do a big change of set up is Oscar Piastri who after not having made any changes in yesterday's sessions finds himself making them half an hour from the end of FP3 of the Austrian GP. This allows him to complete a lap getting closer to his teammate. And then with 10 minutes to go everyone goes out on the track to find the Austrian GP FP3 fastest lap which in the end is of Lando Norris who finishes in 1:04.324, ahead of Piastri and Verstappen.
Top teams update after FP3 of the Austrian GP
La McLaren It seems to be uncatchable as It manages to carry a lot of speed in the center of the curve where aerodynamic support is needed. In fact, this is where the difference is made compared to other teams. Instead, the Ferrari thanks to the updates it seems to have managed to gain a few tenths. However, in Maranello they struggled a bit to find a good set up and so there are still many question marks about their performance. For this reason the team has mainly focused on qualifying tests which are the ones where the reds have more difficulty compared to the long runs, which already seemed good yesterday.
Well there Mercedes especially in yesterday's sessions, favoured by the not too high temperatures and the layout of the track, while today it seemed a bit more indecipherable. On the contrary, those who had the most difficulty in finding the right set up were the Red Bull. However, after two difficult sessions yesterday, it now seems to have found a good balance. In fact, it is worth mentioning the Verstappen's long run (the only one to try the race pace) who manages to maintain excellent consistency in all his laps.
Austrian GP FP3 final standings
Once again no surprises: the McLaren is very fast and the others find themselves having to chase. But who knows what kind of surprises the qualification and race might have in store for us… In the meantime, we'll give you appointment at 16pm to find out who will start from pole.
Below we leave you the final standings of these FP3 of the Austrian GP:
