The tension is rising towards the qualification for the Austrian Grand Prix: McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri already made an impression on Friday, and again in the third free practice on Saturday. However, Max Verstappen is hot on their heels, as evidenced in the final session.
Verstappen is the first driver to set a time in the third session. The Dutchman does this on the hard tyre, a compound he ignored in the first two free practice sessions on Friday. At that time, he was a few tenths slower than McLaren. Yet, it has happened several times this season that Verstappen turned out to be faster than Norris and Piastri in the qualification the following day. Whether this will also be the case on Saturday afternoon (15:00 UTC) in Spielberg, given the third free practice, remains to be seen.
In it, Verstappen remains the fastest on the hard tyre in the first quarter of an hour, after which Norris takes over the lead on the soft rubber. Notably, George Russell and Kimi Antonelli have not set a time until almost halfway through the session. On Friday, the former particularly stood out in the first free practice, much to his own surprise. In this third session, it’s initially a struggle for the Mercedes duo.
Meanwhile, Ferrari is doing everything it can to make the update on the SF-25 work. This is proving to be a challenge for both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc. The pair are not performing miracles in the third session, although they are showing some signs of improvement. A pleasant surprise is the Sauber team, with Nico Hülkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto consistently ranking in the top 10 during the third free practice session.
Spin
The real excitement in Austria comes towards the end of the free practice session. While the Red Bull team is working on Verstappen’s car, Norris once again demonstrates his speed, and both Isack Hadjar and Verstappen show how to execute a stunning 360-spin on the straight track in the final phase. The Dutchman, during a qualifying simulation on soft tires, eventually clocks the third fastest time. Can he pull off a surprise in the battle for pole position later in the day? He will certainly have a tough challenge against the Norris-Piastri duo, as McLaren’s speed is unmatched in Austria so far.
