Antonelli Leads FP3 in Belgium as Hamilton Crashes Out
Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli topped the timesheets in the final practice session for the Belgian Grand Prix, edging out McLaren's Lando Norris despite a late-session crash for Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton. The session saw Antonelli set an impressive pace, with teams preparing for the upcoming qualifying session.
In the last practice before the Belgian Grand Prix, Kimi Antonelli showed impressive form, leading the session for Mercedes. He clocked a time of 1:45.990, narrowly ahead of McLaren's Lando Norris and Red Bull's Max Verstappen. Meanwhile, Ferrari faced a setback as Lewis Hamilton crashed towards the session's end, leaving the team scrambling to fix his car before qualifying.
As the green light signaled the start of FP3, teams were in no rush to hit the track. It wasn't until nearly 20 minutes in that most drivers began their runs under clear skies. Hamilton was quick out of the blocks, setting an early benchmark with a 1:47.436 on soft tires, only to be closely followed by McLaren's Oscar Piastri.
Rookie Arvid Lindblad of Racing Bulls momentarily claimed the top spot, but Hamilton soon reclaimed it with a 1:46.789. However, Antonelli and his Mercedes teammate, George Russell, along with Verstappen, had yet to make their presence felt on the track.
It wasn't long before Verstappen joined the fray, positioning himself just behind Hamilton. Mercedes opted to delay their runs, focusing on simulating qualifying conditions. Once Antonelli took to the track, he swiftly topped the charts, leaving Hamilton trailing by eight-tenths. Russell struggled in comparison, lamenting a lack of speed that left him over a second behind his teammate.
Issues continued for Red Bull's Isack Hadjar, who faced a grid penalty due to new power unit components. He experienced a pit lane mishap and narrowly avoided a collision with Lance Stroll's Aston Martin. After a brief stint on track, his frustrations were evident as he aborted a lap, citing "everything is too cold."
As the session drew towards its conclusion, Verstappen managed to improve his time, closing in on Antonelli. Norris made a late surge, overtaking both Russell and Verstappen to secure P2. Antonelli's attempt to better his time was thwarted by a wide run at La Source, but his initial lap remained unbeaten.
Hamilton's session ended prematurely with a crash reminiscent of Pierre Gasly's incident in FP2. The Ferrari driver lost control at Turn 13, skidding into the gravel and brushing the barriers. He stopped his damaged car further down the track, leaving Ferrari with much work to do.
Elsewhere, Charles Leclerc slotted into P6, while Piastri led the Audi duo of Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto. Hadjar finished in P10, just ahead of Lindblad and Liam Lawson's Racing Bulls. The field was rounded out by Ollie Bearman in Haas, who split the Alpines of Franco Colapinto and Gasly.
Williams' Alex Albon found himself in P16, while Valtteri Bottas in a Cadillac and Carlos Sainz in the other Williams completed the pack, with Sainz under investigation for a yellow flag infringement. Esteban Ocon (Haas), Sergio Perez (Cadillac), and the Aston Martins of Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll brought up the rear.
As the teams now turn their focus to qualifying, the stage is set for an exciting showdown at Spa-Francorchamps.