Good morning Fantasy Trainers, the third and final free practice session in Las Vegas has concluded. We now have all the elements to field our Fanta F1 team, in view of the qualifications which will begin at 9.
A peaceful awakening that Nevada gives us, so much so that 15 minutes into the session almost half of the riders still hadn't set a time. The two Ferrari drivers did so, reconfirming the good result of yesterday's test session, the only one that ended completely. While the two Red Bull drivers remain calm and chat in the pits.
Discovering Las Vegas
The track is new, and because it is new, it must be traveled like a path before it can be defined and safe, each lap is essential to store sensations for the riders and data for the teams. Everyone is trying to understand something in Las Vegas, a city that also confirms itself as a lively and unpredictable place with F1. “It's about understanding” therefore and the teams are working hard to do so. For example, Ferrari has chosen to look for a more streamlined set-up on both cars, choosing different configurations, (respect in the second session of yesterday), for the rear wing and the front wing, which are reminiscent of a configuration used at Spa. While there is also who decides not to change the downforce like Red Bull. The track must be understood, not only by the drivers but also byorganization that decides to extend the DRS area located in curve 14.
Free trials!
Halfway through PL3 all the riders finally set at least one time on the soft tires. Once the two Red Bulls hit the asphalt they left no room for anyone, simulating a clean lap with Max reaching a 1.34.603. His teammate is half a second behind, followed by an excellent Alexander Albon, who intends to conclude a very constant and positive season with Williams. The other two teams on the constructors' podium, Mercedes and Ferrari, whose battle is still heated, choose to test the race pace. Ferrari's pace is interesting as it seems, even without knowing the fuel load, to be able to maintain a good 1.38 min.
There were a few moments of tension between Leclerc and Kevin Magnussen who crossed paths aggressively on a couple of occasions, the usual "bickering" between riders which obviously ends with nothing significant.
What to expect in qualifying?
The last minutes with more rubberized track, you "try to understand" how many seconds you have left and the sectors light up in fuchsia while you attempt the qualifying lap. The practice seems to be that of a double warm-up round, to seek feeling by exploiting the little degradation. And it is here that 5 minutes from the end of the session, Alex Albon puts his Williams against the wall, loses a tire and forces a red flag and the interruption of PL3. The two Ferrari drivers who were racing at the moment of the flag remain without a lap. World champion Max Verstappen was outside the top three and, due to some mistakes, often when braking, only set the fourth fastest time. George Russell set the fastest lap of the session, followed by Oscar Piastri, born in 2001, and Logan Sargeant's Williams.. Which confirms Williams' good feeling on the American track at the end of the session.
Order of arrival:
Russell 1.34.093 – Piastri +0.398 – Sargeant +0.552 – Verstappen +0.560 – Perez +0.613 – Albon +0.633 – Alonso +0.695 – Hamilton +0.760 – Bottas +0.815 – Magnussen + 0.974 – Norris + 0.996 – Hulkenberg + 1.019 – Stroll + 1.160 – Ocon + 1.204 – Ghuanyu + 1.788 – Leclerc + 1.815 – Sainz +1.846 – Tsunoda + 1.994 – Gasly + 2.392 – Ricciardo + 3.685.
