Japan – Free Practice 3: When Vettel’s away, Webber will play

Work ahead today to tame the Suzuka track, which didn’t fail to send drivers off track at the slightest error yesterday: Bianchi, Van der Garde, Alonso, Räikkönen, and Pérez all tested the edges of the Japanese circuit, with varying fortunes.

It should be noted that the Marussia cars are displaying a white star on the back of the mirrors, in tribute to Maria de Villota, a former driver of the team who passed away yesterday at 33 years old.

The session is open and the first on track is Esteban Gutierrez, followed by a comeback: Jules Bianchi, whose car has been repaired. The Frenchman is already taking risks at the 130R. What audacity. Most drivers are trying a little standing start simulation at the end of the pitlane before heading onto the track to perform their installation laps or even their flying laps. Romain Grosjean, by the way, misses the chicane braking and goes straight. His teammate sets a time of 1:33.741: it’s the first benchmark of the morning. Grosjean misses the chicane again: he seems to be struggling with braking at this spot. The first times are set on hard tires (orange), so the drivers can string together fast laps.

After 10 minutes of free practice, Räikkönen leads Pérez, Grosjean, Van der Garde, and Pic. Räikkönen slightly improves with a 1:33.637, but Grosjean does better by 4 tenths: the chicane braking went well this time. Nico Rosberg and Mark Webber make their presence felt: the Australian sets the best time for his first timed lap, at 1:32.722. Vettel misses out by six tenths to his teammate, having made a small mistake at the hairpin braking. The Ferraris still have not bothered to come out to set a time. Bianchi, who has not yet had a chance to test them, is the first driver to put on the medium (white) tires.

After 20 minutes, Webber leads Grosjean, Vettel, Rosberg, and Räikkönen. Nico Hülkenberg informs his team that he fears an exhaust issue, judging the sound of his engine to be strange. He is advised to return to the pits where, shortly after, his car is dismantled with a suspected crack. Meanwhile, Vettel improves his time and closes in within three-tenths of his teammate. Pastor Maldonado, going too fast, goes slightly wide at the hairpin, but without consequences. Felipa Massa is the first Scuderia driver on track. Almost halfway through the session, the Lotus cars put on the medium tires: Grosjean takes the lead at 1:32.707, just ahead, and Räikkönen clocks in at 1:32.946. Meanwhile, Hamilton tests his Mercedes’s undertray by going slightly wide and will have to pit to check its condition.

Mid-session, Grosjean leads ahead of Webber, Räikkönen, Vettel, and Hamilton. In the Force India garage, they are scrubbing the floor where a driver spun his wheels while taking off, the rascal. Grosjean misses the braking at the first corner, but without consequences. However, Adrian Sutil lost control of his car at the exit of Spoon: he hits the inner tire wall, leaving behind the front wing and then the rear. The German will watch the end of this session from the side of the track. Few improvements to note: the drivers are on slightly longer stints.

20 minutes from the end, Grosjean still leads Webber, Räikkönen, Vettel, and Hamilton. At Red Bull, the team is working rather calmly around the car of the triple world champion, who has left his seat and overalls. The undertray is removed, the car drained: there seems to be a significant problem. The German will not finish this session. On track, Rosberg is on a long run with hard tires, with rather decent times. Hülkenberg is back after his warning, for a short lap.

10 minutes to go, Grosjean leads Webber, Räikkönen, Vettel, and Hamilton. The final minutes of practice should provide an opportunity for all drivers to attempt a fast lap on medium tires. So far, only the Lotus team, among the frontrunners, has tried them. Alonso has fitted the softest compounds: the first two sectors go quite well, but the car starts to struggle in Spoon. On the line, the Spaniard falls short by 93 thousandths from Grosjean. Massa is just behind his teammate, 108 thousandths behind the Lotus. It’s Webber’s turn to switch to mediums, and the result is unequivocal: the Australian sets the fastest time with a 1:32.053, over six-tenths ahead of Grosjean, who will not make another attempt. Rosberg sets the second provisional time, three-tenths behind Webber. The last man with a chance to improve is Lewis Hamilton: the Brit records the second fastest time, 134 thousandths behind Webber.

Red Bull is in form, but not the one you might think: Mark Webber sets the fastest time while his teammate was stuck in the pits due to a problem midway through the session. Behind, the Mercedes are present, as are the Lotus cars that set their best lap early on. The Ferraris, in pure performance, are still lagging. Noteworthy, the interesting performances of Button and Hülkenberg in the top 10.

Free Practice 3 Results of the 2013 Japanese Grand Prix: