Kimi Antonelli once again dominated Free Practice 3 of the Belgian Grand Prix. However, Lewis Hamilton ended the session in the wall, forcing Ferrari into a race against time before qualifying.
Read more Lewis Hamilton destroys his Ferrari before qualifying at Spa
Kimi Antonelli continues his impressive weekend at Spa-Francorchamps. Already the fastest in FP2 on Friday, the Mercedes driver repeated the feat on Saturday morning by setting the benchmark in the third free practice session.
The Italian was the only driver to go below the 1’46 mark, with a time of 1’45″990, despite a final attempt that did not allow him to improve his time. A performance that confirms the pace shown by Mercedes since the start of the weekend and makes him the main contender for pole position.
As on the previous day, Lando Norris and Max Verstappen were the closest to the Italian. The McLaren driver finished less than two tenths of a second behind, just ahead of the four-time world champion.
However, George Russell again seemed to be off the pace. The Briton finished fourth, nearly four tenths behind his teammate, confirming the difficulties encountered since Friday.
A session marked by qualifying simulations
Unlike the first two days, FP3 started relatively calmly. The drivers waited several minutes before taking to the track, with teams dividing their programs between long runs and qualifying simulations.
Max Verstappen left his garage only after about twenty minutes, soon followed by the two Mercedes. The three drivers immediately fitted soft tires to prepare for the qualifying session.
At Racing Bulls, Isack Hadjar experienced a scare right after leaving the pits. Victim of a total power loss at the end of the pit lane, the Frenchman had to be pushed back by his mechanics before being able to restart a few moments later.
Read more Kimi Antonelli takes pole at Spa and resists Red Bull’s tactical move
Mid-session, Antonelli made a big statement by putting his pursuers nearly eight tenths behind with his best lap. Behind him were Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen, while George Russell was already more than a second behind.
With the interruptions in FP2 limiting the teams’ work on Friday, several teams then favored longer runs before carrying out a final series of fast laps in the last fifteen minutes.
Verstappen came back to just 0″148 of the best time, before Norris took second place, a few thousandths ahead of the Dutchman. Antonelli, meanwhile, was unable to improve but his time remained untouchable.
Ferrari under pressure after Hamilton’s off-track
The end of the session was however marked by a major setback for Ferrari.
While Lewis Hamilton seemed able to calmly prepare for qualifying, the Briton went off track at turn 13, exactly the same spot where Pierre Gasly went off during FP2 on Friday.
The seven-time world champion hit the wall, causing significant damage to the rear of his SF-26. The images immediately raised concern in the Ferrari garage.
Before this mistake, Hamilton was in fifth place, while Charles Leclerc was sixth without managing to get involved in the fight for the best time.
The Briton’s accident now forces the Scuderia mechanics into a real race against time to repair the car before qualifying begins. If the damage turns out to be more serious than expected, Ferrari could see one of its main cards seriously compromised in the fight for pole position.
Read more Red Bull facing a wave of departures: the link with Max Verstappen questioned
FP3 standings of the 2026 Belgian GP F1:
