The end of the season is nearing as we head into the final practice session for the Abu Dhabi GP. The final 60 minutes kick off with the Aston Martin duo of Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll, the first car out on the track on the hard tyre compound.
Early lap times
The Astons file back into the pits without setting a time to change on the medium rubber before coming back to the pits.
The Alpines are the next cars out on track as Pierre Gasly sets the first timed lap of the session a 1.26.040 on the soft tyres. However, new teammate Jack Doohan sets an even quicker time, clocking in at 1:25.633.
With 46 minutes to go, Alonso and Stroll get in their first timed laps of the session, with Stroll putting himself on top of the leaderboard with a 1:25.528.
With a quarter of the session already behind, more cars head out. Charles Leclerc and George Russell were the first of the front runners to come out of the pits. Leclerc’s time initially puts him in P5, though he quickly drops position as more cars set their times.
Kevin Magnussen goes fastest with a 1:24.470, nearly four-tenths ahead of the McLaren on Lando Norris in P2.
Times tumble
Near the halfway point, Max Verstappen is the fastest of the medium runners, setting a time of 1:24.985, which puts him in P5.
At the halfway point, Magnussen is still on top of the leaderboard, with Norris, Hulkenberg, Piastri, and Leclerc completing the Top five.
George Russell is down in P20, complaining about the car’s slowness, before improving his time to 1:25.120, which puts him in P9.
Carlos Sainz and Max Verstappen are the only cars on the medium tyres. Sainz’s time of 1:24.631 puts him in P2, a tenth ahead of Verstappen’s in P3.
With 20 minutes left in the session, the drivers launch into long runs, with hardly anyone improving on their fastest lap.
Alex Albon is the first driver out on a fresh set of soft tyres, setting the fastest lap of the session so far with a 1:24.378.
With just over 10 minutes to go, more drivers head out on fresh sets of soft tyres, with Oscar Piastri setting a time of 1:23.433, six-tenths faster than George Russell in P2.
Norris, Verstappen, and Sainz improve their times but can’t beat the time set by Piastri.
The session ends with the McLaren duo on top of the standings; the order reversed from FP2 with Piastri ahead of Norris. Hamilton, Verstappen, Sainz, Russell, Hulkenberg, Magnussen, Leclerc, and Perez round out the top 10 in FP3 at the Abu Dhabi GP.
