FP3: Verstappen fastest in final Saudi Arabian practice as Bearman debuts for Ferrari

Red Bull Racing/Red Bull Content Pool

Max Verstappen led the final practice session for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix with a swift 1m28.412s lap on soft tyres. The Red Bull driver outpaced Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc by 0.146s.

Check out the results of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix weekend, including the race results, qualifying times, and practice sessions

Notably, reserve driver Oliver Bearman stepped in for Ferrari, replacing Carlos Sainz, who has appendicitis. Bearman, fresh off a pole position in F2, impressed by securing 10th place.

Sergio Perez completed the top three, trailing Leclerc by 0.3s and Verstappen by nearly half a second. George Russell emerged as the quickest Mercedes in fourth, while teammate Lewis Hamilton ranked ninth.

McLaren’s Lando Norris ended the session just 0.07s behind Hamilton. Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll placed sixth and seventh for Aston Martin, with rookie Oscar Piastri in eighth.

The session was briefly halted when Zhou Guanyu crashed his Sauber at Turn 7, causing significant damage. The Sauber team now faces a tight deadline to repair the car before qualifying.

Logan Sargeant’s session ended prematurely due to damage from wall contact, leaving him without a timed lap. Alpine showed promise with Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon in 12th and 14th, respectively, while Yuki Tsunoda outperformed teammate Daniel Ricciardo.

Qualifying is scheduled for 20:00 local time.

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