FP3: Leclerc tops rain-affected final practice

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F1 Grand Prix, GP Singapore, Marina Bay Street Circuitsg

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc set the benchmark in the rain-affected final free practice for the Singapore Grand Prix, beating reigning world champion Max Verstappen and his team mate Carlos Sainz thanks to a late effort that saw him clock a 1:57.782 on a damp, but drying surface. F1Technical's Balázs Szabó reports on Free Practice 3 of the Singapore Grand Prix.

While the opening day of the Singapore Grand Prix took place in good weather conditions, torrential rain arrived just ahead of the start of the final practice session. The rain was so heavy that the session had to be delayed by half an hour, meaning that drivers had only thirty minutes to get a feel for their cars ahead of the all-important qualifying session.

While the majority of the drivers kick off their day on the wet weather tyres, they all changed quickly to the intermediate tyres.

Lap times tumbled as the circuit dried out with Leclerc setting the benchmark with a 1m57.782s thanks to a late push lap. The Monegasque beat Verstappen by 0.526s on a weekend where the Red Bull driver could seal a second world title.

After setting the fastest lap Free Practice 2 yesterday in dry conditions, Ferrari’s Spanish driver Carlos Sainz ended up third fastest with Fernando Alonso finishing in an eye-catching fourth place.

George Russell finished ninth as Mercedes seemed to struggle with tyre warm-up on the damp surface, with Lewis Hamilton finishing 12th. The Anglo-German outfit appeared to be in great form yesterday, but the inability of their 2022 F1 car to generate enough heat into the tyres put them on the back foot in the difficult third practice.


Pierre Gasly was quick at the start of the session, but he eventually dropped down to P13, his team mate Yuki Tsunoda 15th in the other AlphaTauri.

McLaren had a dismal session as Lando Norris posted 16th for McLaren, over four seconds off the pace. His team mate Daniel Ricciardo finished higher up the order in P10, but he was also over three seconds off Leclerc's benchmark time.

Haas driver Mick Schumacher will face an investigation due to an improperly fit right-rear tyre during a switch to inters. The German finished the session in P14 while his team mate Kevin Magnussen took 11th.

Williams' Alex Albon returned to the paddock after missing the Italian Grand Prix three weeks ago with the Thai driver taking 17th in the final practice. Alfa Romeo's Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu finished 18th and 19th respectively with Williams Canadian driver Nicholas Latifi rounding out the leaderboard.

Results

Pos.No.DriverCarTimeGapLaps
116Charles LeclercFerrari1:57.78210
21Max VerstappenRed Bull Racing Rbpt1:58.308+0.526s11
355Carlos SainzFerrari1:58.848+1.066s11
414Fernando AlonsoAlpine Renault1:59.429+1.647s8
511Sergio PerezRed Bull Racing Rbpt1:59.526+1.744s10
618Lance StrollAston Martin Aramco Mercedes2:00.373+2.591s10
731Esteban OconAlpine Renault2:00.911+3.129s8
85Sebastian VettelAston Martin Aramco Mercedes2:01.007+3.225s10
963George RussellMercedes2:01.010+3.228s9
103Daniel RicciardoMclaren Mercedes2:01.036+3.254s12
1120Kevin MagnussenHaas Ferrari2:01.089+3.307s12
1244Lewis HamiltonMercedes2:01.220+3.438s7
1310Pierre GaslyAlphatauri Rbpt2:01.245+3.463s14
1447Mick SchumacherHaas Ferrari2:01.502+3.720s12
1522Yuki TsunodaAlphatauri Rbpt2:01.679+3.897s13
164Lando NorrisMclaren Mercedes2:01.791+4.009s12
1723Alexander AlbonWilliams Mercedes2:01.907+4.125s12
1877Valtteri BottasAlfa Romeo Ferrari2:02.066+4.284s11
1924Zhou GuanyuAlfa Romeo Ferrari2:02.599+4.817s11
206Nicholas LatifiWilliams Mercedes2:03.510+5.728s9