Verstappen completes F1 practice sweep in close Canada FP3
Max Verstappen closed out final practice for the Canadian Grand Prix at the top of the timesheets following a closely-contested session, with just one-tenth of a second separating the top three Formula 1 teams in Montreal.
After leading both FP1 and FP2 on Friday for Red Bull, Verstappen completed a sweep of practice by heading the field in FP3 on Saturday morning, recording a fastest lap time of 1m11.599s.
Max Verstappen closed out final practice for the Canadian Grand Prix at the top of the timesheets following a closely-contested session, with just one-tenth of a second separating the top three Formula 1 teams in Montreal.
After leading both FP1 and FP2 on Friday for Red Bull, Verstappen completed a sweep of practice by heading the field in FP3 on Saturday morning, recording a fastest lap time of 1m11.599s.
The session saw Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes all attempt qualifying simulations on the Hypersoft tyre, with just 0.107s covering drivers for all three teams at the chequered flag, setting the stage for a close fight for pole position at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.
Ferrari had looked in control for much of the session as Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen ran P1 and P2, separated by two-thousandths of a second, only for Verstappen's lap to demote the drivers to second and third respectively.
Six-time Canadian Grand Prix winner Lewis Hamilton took fourth for Mercedes, one-tenth of a second back from Verstappen, with the Briton getting his first taste of the Hypersoft tyre at this circuit during FP3 after not using it at all on Friday.
Daniel Ricciardo lagged behind in P5 for Red Bull, half a second off his teammate, while Valtteri Bottas rounded out the top six in the second Mercedes.
Sergio Perez led the midfield fight for Force India, finishing up seventh ahead of Renault's Nico Hulkenberg, who recovered from his lost running on Friday to finish FP3 in eighth. Romain Grosjean took ninth for Haas, while Stoffel Vandoorne rounded out the top 10 for McLaren.
Esteban Ocon took 11th in the second Force India ahead of Toro Rosso's Brendon Hartley, who impressed with the team's newly-updated Honda engine. Fernando Alonso was 13th for McLaren ahead of Carlos Sainz Jr., with Pierre Gasly ending the session 15th.
Charles Leclerc wound up 16th for Sauber ahead of Kevin Magnussen, with Sergey Sirotkin, Marcus Ericsson and Lance Stroll rounding out the bottom three positions.
