Oscar Piastri set the fastest time in the final free practice session of the 2024 season in Abu Dhabi, leading a McLaren one-two ahead of teammate Lando Norris. Lewis Hamilton rounded out the top three, with the trio laying down the marker ahead of Saturday’s crucial qualifying session at the Yas Marina Circuit. Meanwhile, Ferrari faced a challenging session, struggling to match the pace of their championship rivals.
The session began at a leisurely pace, with most drivers remaining in the garage as the clock ticked away. The Aston Martins and Alpines were the only teams to hit the track at the session’s start, while others waited patiently, arms crossed, watching the monitors. After about 15-20 minutes, on-track action finally ramped up. Kevin Magnussen briefly stole the spotlight, clocking an impressive 1:24.470 on soft tires to take the top spot. However, the Danish driver’s moment in the sun was short-lived as faster lap times started coming in.
Ferrari’s woes deepened during the session when Carlos Sainz appeared to encounter an engine issue. A small plume of white smoke was seen trailing from the exhaust of his car, sparking concerns of a potential reliability problem. If this leads to another component change, Ferrari could face a grid penalty that might extinguish their faint hopes of securing a final championship upset. However, it remains unclear if the issue is serious or merely a false alarm.
As the session entered its final 15 minutes, drivers switched focus to simulated qualifying runs. Oscar Piastri set an impressive benchmark, beating teammate Lando Norris by nearly two-tenths of a second to claim the top spot. Lewis Hamilton put in a strong lap late on soft tires to secure third place, while Max Verstappen finished in fourth. McLaren’s commanding pace hints that they may be in control this weekend as they aim to seal the Constructors’ Championship title.
Saturday morning’s results mark the second consecutive session where McLaren locked out the top two positions on the timesheets, showcasing their dominance at this critical juncture of the season. This time, it was Piastri who led the charge, demonstrating his growing confidence and consistency as the season draws to a close.
Lewis Hamilton’s performance in third underscored his ability to extract the maximum from his Mercedes, while Max Verstappen’s fourth-place effort left questions about Red Bull’s outright pace heading into qualifying.
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Ferrari, by contrast, looked off the mark. Based on their FP3 showing, they don’t appear to have the speed to challenge McLaren this weekend. However, the unique conditions of Yas Marina – with cooler temperatures during the evening sessions – could yet work in their favor during qualifying and the race.
For Charles Leclerc, the task ahead is even more daunting. He finished only ninth in the session and faces a 10-place grid penalty that will leave him with a mountain to climb come race day. Whether Ferrari can turn their fortunes around under the floodlights remains to be seen.
Final Practice Three classification
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