F1 Mexican GP: Mercedes top FP3 ahead of qualifying
29th October 2022Mercedes’ George Russell topped the timing sheets for the second time this weekend, ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
How final practice unfolded…
Following limited runs yesterday, after Pirelli’s tyre test dictated second practice, there was a flurry of action out of the pit lane. However, there was jeopardy in the air ahead of qualifying later on Saturday as FP3 was given a 40% chance of rain.
When the pit exit light went green, the Alfa Romeo pairing of Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou were the first drivers to set out onto the circuit, ahead of the Aston Martin duo.
However, in the first opening runs, Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, Charles Leclerc and Red Bull’s Sergio Perez topped the session, in P1, P2 and P3 respectively. But, the Spaniards time at the top was short lived as Mercedes’ George Russell topped the timing boards with a 1:19.405.
Haas’ Mick Schumacher soon brought the yellow flags out as the young German driver had a moment at turn 11. It was found the Haas driver carried too much speed into the fast chicane and put his VF-22 into a spin before the car came to a stop.
Fortunately, Schumacher was able to continue on but he created an impressive flat-spot on his front left tyre.
It wasn’t long until Red Bull’s Max Verstappen came out and put in the fastest lap, at the first time of asking. However, it wasn’t long until Russell responded and reset the timing boards with a 1:18.399, on a red-walled soft tyre run. The young Briton was quickly followed by his teammate, Lewis Hamilton who went second fastest.
Despite Verstappen’s best efforts, on fresh soft rubber, the defending world champion was only able to secure the third fastest lap time while Russell and Hamilton remained out on top. Leclerc, Perez and Sainz rounded out the top six in P4, P5 and P6 respectively.
Top three:
- George Russell, Mercedes
- Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
- Max Verstappen, Red Bull
That’s it for the article; F1 Mexican GP: Mercedes top FP3 ahead of qualifying! Out of Hamilton, Russell or Verstappen, who is going to get pole position – or will it be someone else? Let us know in the comments!
Read more Formula 1 here:
- F1 Mexican GP: Russell tops FP2 as Leclerc crashes
- F1 Mexico GP: Sainz tops first practice session amongst red flag stops
- FIA punish Red Bull for 2021 Cost Cap
- Alpine’s protest upheld Alonso returns to P7
- F1 Mexican Grand Prix: Perez or Verstappen for top honours
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Hi, I’m Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion.
I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I’ve loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.
Kamron Kent
Hi, I'm Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion. I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I've loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.
