George Russell fastest in Barcelona-Catalunya FP3 as Kimi Antonelli rages at F1 rivals

Follow us on Google Discover

George Russell topped the timings during the final practice session for the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix as Valtteri Bottas triggered a mid-session red flag.

Reigning world champion Lando Norris set the pace in FP2 on Friday after sitting out the opening session as part of McLaren’s mandatory rookie driver programme.

Mercedes also handed over a car for a rookie outing in FP1, with Andrea Kimi Antonelli watching from the sidelines while reserve driver Frederik Vesti took to the track. That left George Russell free to lead the way in the opening session of the weekend.

Cadillac wasted no time sending both cars out for the start of FP3, eager to make up for the lost running that both Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas endured on Friday.

The Finn’s FP2 programme was heavily disrupted by an electronic control unit issue on his MAC-26, sidelining him for more than 30 minutes of the session. With FP2 traditionally offering the most representative conditions for both qualifying and the race, the lost track time left Cadillac with valuable data to recover heading into the final hour of practice.

READ MORE: Lando Norris fastest in Barcelona-Catalunya FP2 as George Russell splits the McLaren drivers

Kimi Antonelli is going for his sixth straight win at the Barcelona GP. Who’s your pick for the top step of the podium?

Comment

Like or Comment

Have your say Sign-in now for free

Nico Hulkenberg was the next driver to venture out, immediately going nearly a second and a half quicker than the two Cadillacs in his Audi. The German was soon joined on track by the Williams and Haas drivers as the pit lane began to fill and teams got their FP3 programmes underway.

Williams’ troubled weekend appeared to continue after just one lap, with Carlos Sainz reporting a lack of power over team radio. Moments later, Lando Norris raised similar concerns with McLaren.

Any further problems will be a particular worry for Williams after the team was forced into extensive work on Alex Albon’s car. The Grove-based outfit made several changes on Friday after technical issues prevented Luke Browning from taking part in his mandatory rookie FP1 session.

Oscar Piastri’s first flying lap was far from clean, with the championship leader only able to climb to third on the timesheets, and over eight tenths of a second behind his teammate.

The Australian quickly reported that his front wing felt “broken” and complained of a lack of grip, while McLaren confirmed they could see an issue in the data. The team immediately turned its attention to understanding the problem as Piastri continued to circulate.

At the halfway stage of FP3, Russell led a Mercedes one-two, sitting two tenths clear of Antonelli. Norris was third fastest, ahead of Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen.

Tyre management continued to be a major talking point, with the soft compound showing signs of graining after just a single flying lap. Teams will therefore be left with a narrow window to extract maximum performance before grip levels begin to fall away in qualifying.

The session was brought to a halt by a red flag after Bottas suffered a frightening brake failure and speared into the gravel at Turn 10. “I lost my brake pedal, the brakes, they are gone. Very lucky there,” the Cadillac driver reported over team radio, clearly relieved to have escaped without causing significant damage to his car.

The incident also prompted concern from teammate Sergio Perez when the session resumed, with the Mexican asking whether he could be vulnerable to the same issue.

Given that both Cadillac drivers suffered brake fires in Monaco last weekend, the concern was understandable. However, the pit wall was quick to reassure Perez that his car was unaffected and that he could continue his programme without issue for the remainder of the session.

Antonelli was left frustrated after failing to post a representative lap time during FP3, with both of his soft-tyre qualifying simulations compromised by traffic.

On his first attempt, the championship leader fumed over team radio: “Oh my god, Stroll as always,” after encountering the Aston Martin. His second run proved no better, with a Haas catching him at the apex of Turn 1 and forcing the Italian to abandon another flying lap.