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It was another strong session for Mercedes though the final standings had a healthy helping of track evolution.
There was an encouraging late lap from Max Verstappen, though that raised as many questions as it answered.
Track conditions had deteriorated from Thursday, with Sergio Perez’s initial effort a 1:41.51, eight seconds off the pace of Free Practice 2.
Only a handful of drivers headed out in the early moments, most reluctant to sweep the track.
Perez was the only driver to complete a lap inside the opening 15 minutes, most using the initial moments to scrub hard compound tyres.
Verstappen was the second driver to record a lap, coming after 20 minutes, but it was a steady 1:42.180s as he built into a run, improving on his next lap.
Others soon followed as the track became busier, and faster courtesy of the increased running.
That saw times quickly drop into the 1:35s courtesy of Oscar Piastri, his time coming with just over 32 minutes remaining, but it took until after the halfway point for all 20 drivers to record a lap.
Having remained on track, Verstappen complained bitterly that his car was undriveable.
He routinely ran long at Turn 5 and struggled with his front-left tyre.
An impressive performance from Haas saw both Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg at the top of the timesheets for a time.
That pointed to the leading teams not extending themselves on a slippery track, further evidenced as Mercedes shot to the top inside the final 20 minutes.
Lewis Hamilton logged a 1:34.341s to head Russell by just over a tenth, with Sainz third for Ferrari.
Russell then underscored Mercedes’ potential by going fastest again.
With 10 minutes to go, Verstappen finally showed Red Bull Racing’s hand.
On a set of soft tyres, he was solid through the first two sectors before completing the lap 0.081s faster than Russell.
It was the first time throughout the weekend’s three practice session that there had been any real suggestion of speed from Red Bull Racing.
However, others were also improving, including Russell, who promptly went more than 0.5s faster than the Dutchman.
With just under seven minutes remaining, the red flag came out for Lance Stroll, who’d stopped on track exiting Turn 12.
The Aston Martin’s ERS indicator was flashing, meaning the car was not in a safe state to be retrieved, and forced the race director’s hands.
It was cleared comparatively quickly once deemed safe and the session resumed with a minute remaining, enough to allow cars on track so they could complete a practice start on the grid (with the exception of Sergio Perez, who ran out of time as he trundled down the pit lane).
At the chequered flag, Russell was fastest over Oscar Piastri and Sainz, a remarkably similar story to what emerged on Friday, with Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren all in the fight for pole position.
Of those, Mercedes has solidified its position as the favourite though Ferrari is not far away – Charles Leclerc’s pace masked by the timing of the Stroll red flag.
Just where Red Bull Racing stands remains unclear; progress appears to have been made but quantifying the engineering gains against track evolution is unclear.
What is abundantly clear ahead of qualifying is that timing in the three-part session will be key; running last holds a distinct advantage.
