While the arguments off track are starting to come to a head, Mercedes continued their domination of the 70th Anniversary GP. Hotter temperatures started to play havoc with the cars and tyre durability continues to perplex the teams. The battle for best of the rest appears to be anyone’s game. Daniel Ricciardo is very confident with his Renault, but Lando Norris impressed with a superb stint on the medium tyre.
Report:
It was a slow start to the session, with not many cars going out on track straight away. The Ferraris and McLarens set the fastest times early on, while Pierre Gasly managed to achieve 2nd place with a solid lap. Temperatures rose throughout the session and many cars appeared to have issues setting the perfect lap times. Valtteri Bottas set the fastest lap time in his Mercedes, but it took until halfway through the session before Lewis Hamilton attempted to best his time. He was unable to straight away, he and Max Verstappen having similar problems on their fast runs. Hamilton did later steal 1st away from Bottas but wouldn’t hold the position for long.
Lando Norris put in a stunning lap on the Medium tyres to go a second clear at the top of the standings. Charles Leclerc’s lap showed the tire woes with his soft compound running out over the course of one lap. Worries were escalating, with fears that the teams may not have saved enough tires for the race. Mercedes fought back however, and both drivers took their regular perch at the top of the standings.
Late in the session, Lance Stroll managed to get in the way of Max Verstappen and impeded his lap time. A similar incident happen between Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris. Norris was on a high fuel run while Ricciardo caught up and lost time during his flying lap. Both the Australian and the Dutchman vented their. frustrations over the team radio.
With no more running until qualifying, the tyre conundrum will be sending the strategists into overtime. Ideally the soft compound tyres will be avoided altogether, but if they are used for the fastest time in Q2, they will have to be used in the race. The next two sessions may be the most unpredictable of the entire 2020 season.
Practice 3 Standings:
- Hamilton 1:26.621
- Bottas +0.163
- Norris +0.581
- Hulkenberg +0.635
- Stroll +0.642
- Leclerc +0.707
- Verstappen +0.834
- Albon +0.853
- Ocon+0.875
- Sainz +1.006
- Gasly +1.038
- Kvyat +1.133
- Vettel +1.190
- Ricciardo +1.194
- Grosjean +1.455
- Latifi +1.504
- Russell +1.728
- Giovinazzi +1.847
- Raikkonen +1.917
- Magnussen +2.142
Featured Image Credit: @McLarenf1 Official Twitter Account
