On Saturday night the engines of the Formula 1 single-seaters roar, with Free Practice 3 to prepare before qualifying in Suzuka. After Wet FP2s with many timeless drivers, we saw more activity on the track. He took the lead Lewis Hamilton on soft rubber, in front of Max Verstappen on media and Lando Norris on soft. The Ferraris are further away, with Leclerc tenth and Sainz seventh, both on the medium compound. Let's see how these free practices went.
Verstappen is the first to take to the track, wanting to take advantage of the once again dry and valid track conditions compared to Free Practice 2. The first yellow flag of the session is brought by Kevin Magnussen, for his spin without consequences in turn 11.
At the first comparison, Verstappen on medium tires he takes the lead with 1:30.265, followed by Perez to two tenths e Leclerc to 9 tenths. In front of everyone, on soft, Lewis Hamilton he overtakes Verstappen by a clear two tenths, with the Dutchman recovering 72 thousandths in the second lap on the medium compound. Unlike the soft, therefore, the medium also allows a second attempt, with Leclerc's Ferrari also recovering and moving within two tenths of Verstappen.
Different strategies for the various teams, with many drivers studying the behavior of the soft tyre, in particular McLaren with Norris and Piastri who placed third and fourth. Already after the first 20 minutes, however, the teams start working on the race pace, increasing the fuel load and slowing down the pace compared to the qualifying lap.
At RB, a bit of a difficult session for Daniel Ricciardo. After handed over the seat to Iwasa for the first free practice and after the rain in FP2, a spin during the first laps relegated him to twelfth position. With the last run at the end of the session, he was unable to do better than thirteenth, having fallen behind Russell.
Final session for the qualifying simulations
In the last 10 minutes we go back in search of the best time, and Russell, who had only done long run simulations, beats everyone by going under 1:30. Verstappen and Norris also relaunch themselves, as do all the others. In the end it is again Verstappen in command with a 1:29.563, Followed by Perez to almost 3 tenths e Russell at 355 thousandths. The top 10 is completed by Hamilton, Alonso, Norris, Sainz, Piastri, Tsunoda e Leclerc.
Important to report a radio team of Leclerc in the finale, where he complained about the long wait in the pits. Unlike others, in fact, Ferrari waited a long time before sending the drivers onto the track. In doing so, however, Leclerc found himself only able to make two attempts, in an evidently dissatisfied manner.
If Ferrari didn't seem to shine in the qualifying pace, the race pace instead seems to be decidedly valid. Red Bull showed the opposite trend, with a monstrous qualifying pace, but a slower race pace. Mercedes' return was excellent also thanks to the lower temperatures. We'll see if anyone is hiding in the qualifications, which will start at 08:00 Italian time.
