In the lead-up to the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, George Russell topped the timesheets in the final practice session. He narrowly edged out Lando Norris and Max Verstappen, setting a pace of 1m 23.334s on soft tyres.
Final Practice Overview
The session began quietly, with several drivers opting to stay in the garage initially. Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll from Aston Martin were the first to hit the track, sticking to their routine of scrubbing tyres.
Alpine’s Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto aimed to troubleshoot after a disappointing Friday, seeking crucial laps to improve their performance. Gasly found himself struggling at the back of the field as the session progressed.
Drivers’ Performance
Norris set an early benchmark with a 1m 24.728s but soon improved significantly. Oscar Piastri, who replaced Pato O’Ward for this session, lagged by 0.4s in initial timings. As the session continued, Norris faced a near collision with Yuki Tsunoda, which forced him into evasive maneuvers.
- Top Lap Times:
- George Russell: 1m 23.334s
- Lando Norris: 1m 23.338s
- Max Verstappen: 1m 23.462s
- Fernando Alonso: 1m 23.470s
As the session wore on, Ollie Bearman showcased impressive pace, coming close to Norris’s time. Verstappen took the lead momentarily, but it was Stroll who surprised many by briefly overtaking him.
Hamilton’s Incident
Lewis Hamilton experienced a setback midway through the session. He spun at Turn 9 and collided with the barriers, fortunately escaping injury. Hamilton reported that a component failure caused the incident, which halted the session briefly as recovery efforts took place.
With the session nearing its end, Piastri jumped to P1, but Norris quickly retook the top position with a strong lap. Meanwhile, Kimi Antonelli faced trouble in the pit lane, colliding with Tsunoda and damaging his car.
Session Wrap-Up
In the closing minutes, Russell surged ahead to secure P1. Alonso placed fourth, while Piastri rounded out the top five. The Haas teams of Esteban Ocon and Bearman also delivered strong performances, with only 0.388s separating the first ten drivers.
As teams prepare for Qualifying, drivers have a brief period to regroup before the highly anticipated session begins at 1800 local time.
