Brazil GP – Free Practice 3: Vettel stakes his claim ahead of Button

After a sunny first day, the drivers return to the Interlagos circuit under clouds that forecast rain for the rest of the weekend, even though a few rays of sun break through to heat the track to 38°C. As soon as the green light is given, the drivers rush onto the track for their traditional installation laps to ensure all systems are operational and any changes made on Friday evening—or overnight—are effective.

Under the watchful eye of his mother, Viviane, Bruno Senna is the first driver to start the clock with his Lotus Renault Grand Prix, setting a time of 1:16.622 on medium tires. Only d’Ambrosio and Petrov are on the track with the Brazilian, with the Russian posting a 1:17.761 on his first flying lap. Petrov significantly improves on his second lap and takes the lead on the timesheet with a 1:14.654.

After nearly twenty minutes of testing, the top drivers finally leave their garages, with Vettel setting the provisional fastest time of 1:13.754, which is soon beaten by Hamilton with 1:13.508 and Button with 1:13.442. The Ferrari drivers are the only ones who have not yet left their garages, while Sebastien Buemi returns to the pits at a slow pace.

As Hamilton finishes his stint, Sebastian Vettel claims the fastest time of the weekend so far with a 1:13.186 on medium tires. The German then returns to the pits after a series of 7 laps.

Massa is the first of the Ferrari drivers to start the clock, achieving the 12th time with 1:15.287 on his first attempt. Fernando Alonso, for his part, makes a mistake in the Senna S and has to wait for his second fast lap to set a significant first time at 1:14.350, behind the two Mercedes drivers.

At mid-session, Vettel leads Button, Webber, Hamilton, Schumacher, Rosberg, Alonso, Sutil, Di Resta, and Massa. In eleventh, Petrov is ahead of Alguersuari, Perez, Maldonado, Kobayashi, Barrichello, and Senna. In eighteenth, Kovalainen is ahead of Trulli, Ricciardo, D’Ambrosio, Glock, Liuzzi, and Buemi, who is still stuck in his garage.

On his third fast lap, Alonso moves up to fifth place by also going under the 1:14 mark. Back on the track, Michael Schumacher is the first top driver to set a timed lap on soft tires, with a 1:13.393 that allows him to set the provisional 4th fastest time. Nico Rosberg does better with a 1:13.283 and climbs to 3rd place, behind Vettel and Button on hard tires.

At Toro Rosso, the mechanics are busy working on Sebastien Buemi’s car in a race against time before the qualifiers. On the Red Bull side, both Vettel and Webber are focusing on the medium tires, with the Australian setting the best time at 1:13.154, but Adrian Sutil, on soft tires, then takes the best time with a 1:13.113.

At the start of the last ten minutes of the session, Alonso leads the way with stints on soft tires for the top teams, clocking in at 1:12.765. However, other drivers are hindered by traffic, which is significant at this late stage of the session. With a clear track ahead, Lewis Hamilton sets the best time in the first two sectors and finishes his lap at 1:12.622. Webber has to settle for the second-fastest time while Vettel displaces Hamilton from the top spot with a 1:12.508, and Button, drafting behind a Virgin, settles for the 5th fastest time.

Authoring a strong first sector, Hamilton fails to improve while Sebastian Vettel hammers home sector after sector and consolidates his lead with a 1:12.460. However, the German is under threat from Mark Webber, who sets the fastest time in the first sector but falls back in the second. The Australian slots in between the two McLarens, with Jenson Button having set the second-best time under the checkered flag.

At the end of this last practice session and as Felipe Massa and Michael Schumacher almost collide in the pit exit lane, Sebastian Vettel holds the two best times on soft tires, indicating a close fight for pole position.

Free Practice 3 Results of the 2011 Brazilian Grand Prix: