Norris leads Hamilton and Antonelli during FP3 in Hungary
Norris sets the pace in final practice
Lando Norris of McLaren recorded the fastest time during Saturday’s third practice session for the Hungarian Grand Prix. He finished ahead of Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes‘ Kimi Antonelli. Norris posted a best time of 1 minute, 17.939 seconds in warm conditions at the Hungaroring.
The session saw McLaren, Ferrari, and Mercedes drivers closely matched as they prepared for qualifying. Norris’s leading time was just over a tenth of a second quicker than both Hamilton and Antonelli.
Session highlights and incidents
The practice session began at 12:30 local time with Franco Colapinto of Alpine being the first driver on track. Colapinto had experienced car damage on Friday after sliding into barriers. Lance Stroll also participated early in the session, aiming to understand the updated Aston Martin after a suspension issue in FP1 and missing FP2.
An early incident involved Sergio Perez, whose Cadillac car stopped near Turn 2 after exiting the pit lane, leading to red flags. Perez reported losing the engine and experiencing a significant brake issue, with brakes appearing to be on fire. The session resumed at 12:56, allowing drivers just over 30 minutes to continue their practice programmes.
During the session, Arvid Lindblad‘s Racing Bulls car remained on jacks due to a power unit issue. His team had worked overnight to address a similar problem on Liam Lawson‘s car. Antonelli, George Russell, and Max Verstappen joined the track later in the session.
| Pos. | Driver | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lando Norris NOR | 1:17.939 |
| 2 | Lewis Hamilton HAM | +0.117s |
| 3 | Kimi Antonelli ANT | +0.129s |
| 4 | Charles Leclerc LEC | +0.352s |
| 5 | Oscar Piastri PIA | +0.499s |
Hamilton moved into first position for Ferrari with a time of 1 minute, 19.053 seconds. His teammate, Charles Leclerc, then recorded an even faster lap of 1 minute, 18.668 seconds. Antonelli subsequently positioned himself between the two Ferrari drivers before requesting a check of his Mercedes‘ floor after hitting the Turn 4 kerb.
Antonelli, who is the championship leader, briefly took the top spot with a time of 1 minute, 18.254 seconds in the final 15 minutes of the session. However, Norris, driving an upgraded McLaren, then surpassed this with a time of 1 minute, 18.206 seconds. Hamilton improved his time, but Norris ultimately set the fastest lap of 1 minute, 17.939 seconds.
Antonelli finished third. Russell was sixth, while Red Bull drivers Verstappen and Isack Hadjar secured seventh and eighth positions, respectively. Lawson achieved ninth place for Racing Bulls. The Audis of Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto followed, with Lindblad’s car splitting the Alpines of Pierre Gasly and Colapinto. Haas drivers Esteban Ocon and Ollie Bearman were next, followed by the revised Aston Martins of Fernando Alonso and Stroll, Cadillac‘s Valtteri Bottas, and Williams pair Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon, ahead of the sidelined Perez.
Previous practice sessions
In the first practice session, Leclerc was the quickest driver, despite an issue with his Ferrari in the closing stages. He reported a problem with his car, which then had to be returned to the garage. Verstappen was 0.484 seconds behind Leclerc, with Hamilton in third place. Hamilton also noted issues with his car’s upshifts and downshifts during the session.
Hadjar finished fourth, and Russell completed the top five in the first practice. Russell had retired from the Belgian Grand Prix in the previous weekend after a collision with Hamilton. Antonelli did not participate in the first practice session, with rookie Fred Vesti taking his place as per regulations, finishing seventh.
Stroll’s car experienced a left-rear suspension failure in the first practice session, leading to a red flag. Alonso finished 13th in that session. Aston Martin arrived in Budapest with a 16-part car upgrade. Chief trackside officer Mike Krack stated that the team has a plan and is working towards it, acknowledging that both success and setbacks are part of the sport.
Alonso described the updated Aston Martin as feeling “much better” and more predictable, despite finishing 19th in one session. He noted that the car felt more stable and easier to drive in corners. Further upgrades are anticipated for the Italian and Azerbaijan Grands Prix in September. Leclerc expressed caution about the team’s strong performance in Friday practice, anticipating a “tight” qualifying session on Saturday.
Source: formula1.com
