After two top times from Oscar Piastri, it’s his teammate Lando Norris‘s turn in the third and final practice for the GP Emilia-Romagna. The Brit clocks the best time ahead of his Australian colleague, but Max Verstappen is not far behind despite his gloomy Friday forecast.
Who has discovered some points of reference through the usual overnight simulations in the factories to spruce up the car in pursuit of both McLarens? This is the burning question on a sunny Saturday afternoon in Imola. For example, for Red Bull, where star driver Max Verstappen was quite dissatisfied with his challenger, the RB21, after the first training sessions and admitted to having ‘little hope’ of being able to compete with the McLarens in the qualification and race.
The MCL39 that Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri have at their disposal this year on behalf of the British racing team is (almost) unbeatable so far. The duo won five of the six Grands Prix and also set the tone at the final training in Imola. The final session is mainly about qualification speed. Since overtaking at the Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari is particularly difficult, a good starting position on Sunday is of crucial importance.
Lewis Hamilton initially sets the tone in the Ferrari (on the medium tire), but when the preliminary skirmishes are over halfway through the training hour, Verstappen’s name tops the list. The world champion is a fraction faster than Norris and Isack Hadjar, also on the yellow tire. Has Red Bull managed to get McLaren in its sights in time with a few adjustments?
In the qualification runs, it doesn’t seem like it. On the fastest and softest tire, Verstappen fails to improve his time, whereas Norris does. He therefore finishes the final session as the fastest, ahead of colleague Piastri and the reigning world champion. Kimi Antonelli pleases the home crowd with P4, half a second behind Norris, ahead of Charles Leclerc.
