F1 – Piastri keeps McLaren on top in final practice for Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
McLaren continued to set the pace at Yas Marina as Oscar Piastro took top spot almost two tenths of a second clear of team-mate Lando Norris in the final practice session ahead of qualifying for the 2024 FIA Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton took third place for Mercedes ahead of Red Bull Racing’s Max Vesrappen.
With the session taking place in bright sunshine, and unrepresentative of the conditions the drivers are set to experience in qualifying, the session got off to a slow start.
After a quiet first 10 minutes Alpine’s Pierre Gasly posted a 1:26.040 to kick things off. The Frenchman’s new team-mate Jack Doohan then went four tenths quicker to claim top spot with a lap of 1:25.633.
After Lance Stroll had taken his turn in P1 the Haas drivers moved to the top of the order with Kevin Magnussen, who posted a time of 1:24.470, ahead of Nico Hülkenberg. Norris then split the top two, just over three tenths off the Dane.
Max Verstappen was out on the Medium compound tyre in a bid to improve his RB20 after a poor Friday, and the Dutchman slotted into fifth with his first lap in anger and then jumped to second place behind Magnussen thanks to a lap of 1:24.733.
Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, meanwhile, was trundling back to the pits after seeing puffs of smoke emerging from the back of this car. No problem was detected, however, and after being sent back on his way the Medium-shod Spaniard promptly jumped to P2, a tenth ahead of Verstappen and the same margin behind Magnussen.
As the final third of the session began, Magnussen was finally deposed. Williams’ Alex Albon bolted on a new set of Soft tyres and vaulted to top spot with a time of 1:24.378, 0.092 ahead of the Haas driver.
George Russell was the next to improve and moved ahead of Albon, but the Mercedes driver was quickly eclipsed by McLaren’s Oscar Piastri who went six tenths of a second quicker to stop the clock at 1:23.433. Norris then slotted into second a little under two tenths off his team-mate and Verstappen took third with a lap of 1:23.844.
In the final two minutes, Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton, who had earlier asked for a distracting sticker to be removed from his cockpit, jumped to third place ahead of Verstappen with a time of 1:23.823.
With Verstappen in fourth place, fifth went to Sainz, with Russell in sixth ahead of the Haas cars of Hülkenberg and Magnussen.
Charles Leclerc, facing a 10-place grid penalty for taking a third Energy Store of the season, ended the session in P9 and complaining that his team was “nowhere”, while the top 10 was rounded out by Red Bull’s Sergio Pérez.
2024 FIA Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Free Practice 3
1 Oscar Piastri McLaren/Mercedes 1:23.433 16 227.866
2 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 1:23.626 0.193 15 227.340
3 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:23.823 0.390 18 226.806
4 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda RBPT 1:23.844 0.411 17 226.749
5 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 1:23.871 0.438 21 226.676
6 George Russell Mercedes 1:24.075 0.642 18 226.126
7 Nico Hülkenberg Haas/Ferrari 1:24.093 0.660 14 226.078
8 Kevin Magnussen Haas/Ferrari 1:24.094 0.661 14 226.075
9 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:24.098 0.665 20 226.064
10 Sergio Pérez Red Bull/Honda RBPT 1:24.283 0.850 17 225.568
11 Yuki Tsunoda RB/Honda RBPT 1:24.343 0.910 18 225.408
12 Alexander Albon Williams/Mercedes 1:24.378 0.945 15 225.314
13 Pierre Gasly Alpine/Renault 1:24.408 0.975 17 225.234
14 Jack Doohan Alpine/Renault 1:24.434 1.001 17 225.165
15 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin/Mercedes 1:24.453 1.020 19 225.114
16 Valtteri Bottas Sauber/Ferrari 1:24.479 1.046 16 225.045
17 Liam Lawson RB/Honda RBPT 1:24.519 1.086 19 224.938
18 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Mercedes 1:24.531 1.098 20 224.906
19 Zhou Guanyu Sauber/Ferrari 1:24.668 1.235 16 224.542
20 Franco Colapinto Williams/Mercedes 1:24.766 1.333 15 224.283