Russell commands the pace in Barcelona FP3
George Russell put his Mercedes at the top of the pile in a chaotic final practice session at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. His 1m 15.679s effort was the only lap to dip below the 1m 16s barrier, proving that the machine has serious pace when it matters. Oscar Piastri followed for McLaren, landing just two tenths back, while Charles Leclerc split the two McLarens to take third for Ferrari.
It was a difficult session for championship leader Kimi Antonelli. He finished seventh, eight tenths adrift, after battling heavy traffic on his final runs. To make matters worse, the young Mercedes driver picked up a post-session reprimand for erratic driving following an incident with Lance Stroll’s Aston Martin in Turn 1. The session itself was interrupted by a red flag when Valtteri Bottas buried his Cadillac in the gravel at Turn 10, the driver reporting a loss of his brake pedal.
Track conditions were brutal, with temperatures hitting 50 degrees Celsius, making life hard for everyone as they chased qualifying simulations. Lewis Hamilton rounded out the top five for Ferrari, while Max Verstappen’s Red Bull secured sixth. Further back, the field was tight, with Isack Hadjar in eighth and the Audis of Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto showing that this grid remains as unpredictable as ever.
