George Russell fastest in Abu Dhabi FP3 ahead of Lando Norris as Lewis Hamilton crashes Ferrari

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George Russell topped the timings for the final practice of the 2025 season ahead of Lando Norris and Max Verstappen as focus now turns to qualifying later today.

Lando Norris was the fastest in the previous two practice sessions this weekend, with the drivers’ championship his to lose in Abu Dhabi.

Aston Martin were the first team to send cars out onto the track for the final practice, with Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll scrubbing their tyres ahead of the grand prix.

The Silverstone-based squad are the only team who like to scrub the shine off of the new tyres, as Aston Martin believes it helps their drivers get them up to temperature quicker when put on the car in a pit stop.

Teams were slow to make their way onto the track, with the circuit not hugely representative of data later in the day and the track still being a little dusty.

Other than Alpine, Norris and Charles Leclerc were the only drivers to head out in the first 15 minutes, with the Ferrari a second slower on his first soft tyre lap.

Norris went out early to do qualifying laps, but struggled with the rear of the McLaren during his second flying lap. But, despite battling with the car, he still increased his lap pace.

Oscar Piastri’s first flying lap saw him four tenths of a second slower than his teammate. The Aussie found himself below Yuki Tsunoda in the Red Bull, before Oliver Bearman took P2.

Tsunoda and Norris had a near miss at Turn 12, with the McLaren coming round the blind corner on a flying lap to find the Red Bull on the racing line. The Japanese driver, who loses his F1 seat at the end of the season, was quick to apologise, but it will be investigated after the session.

As the track began to ramp up, Max Verstappen snatched the top spot of the timings from Lewis Hamilton, before Stroll placed his Aston Martin in P2.

Just minutes later, Hamilton crashed his Ferrari into the barrier at Turn 9, after a big snap coming round the corner. The Brit said he felt something buckle at the front, which snapped the rear of the car, before he went spinning into the barriers.

It is another blow for Hamilton, who has had a difficult first season with Ferrari, which includes two Q1 exits over the last two weekends. The team will now face the difficult task of repairing the car ahead of Qualifying later today.

The crash red-flagged FP3, resulting in valuable practice time being lost. Mercedes and Piastri were most hindered by the stop of the practice session, with all three drivers coming out late in the session.

Cars were able to get back onto the track with 15 minutes remaining, with Verstappen finding a faster time on his second flying lap of the session.

After sitting in P15 at the red flag, Piastri was able to put a soft tyre lap together to jump to the top of the timings. The Aussie led from Verstappen by half a second, with Norris finding himself in P7 with 10 minutes remaining.

Despite fighting with oversteer again around his first flying lap after the session pause, Norris then pipped his teammate to the top spot. Nico Hulkenberg was also fighting his Sauber around the hotel section before putting his car in third place.

Kimi Antonelli will be investigated for an unsafe release after the session, following a collision with Tsunoda in the pit lane. The Mercedes driver went into the side of the Red Bull, which resulted in Antonelli losing his front wing and scattering carbon fibre across the road.

Tsunoda’s car suffered side pod damage, which saw him out of the car with five minutes left of the session remaining.

Verstappen remained unhappy with his Red Bull after also complaining about the car bouncing last weekend in Qatar. The four-time world champion, who sits second in the championship standings, told his race engineer, “I can’t seem to keep my feet on the pedals”.