After Lewis Hamilton (FP1) and Lando Norris (FP2), Oscar Piastri recorded the fastest time on Saturday at the Silverstone circuit in the final practice session (FP3). Max Verstappen, following a challenging Friday, performed well, finishing just behind Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri in third place. The qualifying session for the British Grand Prix will take place later today at 15:00 UTC.
Under a heavy cloud cover and at a temperature of 19 degrees, the third free practice session began with some delay on Saturday. The track remained quiet for a long time. In the first quarter of an hour, only four drivers made their appearance, with Hamilton representing Ferrari as the fastest in 1.27,351.
Halfway through the final practice hour before today’s qualifying, Hamilton’s teammate Leclerc led the pack with 1.25,922, followed by Max Verstappen by just over two-tenths. On Friday, the four-time world champion from Red Bull was clearly struggling with the balance of his car and – like many others – the unpredictable wind on the open expanse that is Silverstone, but things looked much better on Saturday.
Verstappen Fast in First Sector
Shortly after, Verstappen clocks the fastest time in the first sector, before he has to prematurely end his fast lap due to a slower Alpine obstructing his path. A few minutes later, he gets a clear track and once again, after a strong first sector, he finishes with a time of 1:25.585, good enough for the second-fastest time at that moment, just behind McLaren driver Oscar Piastri (1:25.566). However, both are eventually overtaken by Charles Leclerc (1:25.498) in the remainder of the session. The differences between them are very marginal.
In the final stages, it starts to drizzle a bit, but the light rainfall has little effect on the cars and the progression of the third practice session. Noteworthy incidents are few and far between for a long time, apart from a spin by Lance Stroll who almost slides into the pit lane. The session is halted twice towards the end with a red flag. First, due to some bodywork from Oliver Bearman’s Haas car on the asphalt, and later due to a severe crash by Stake/Sauber driver Gabriel Bortoleto. The Brazilian’s excursion immediately ends the session. Bortoleto himself is unharmed.
The qualifying session for the British Grand Prix starts on Saturday at 14:00 UTC.
