Brazil – Free Practice 3: Mark Webber excels in the rain

It’s once again in the rain that the third free practice session of the Brazilian Grand Prix begins. Esteban Gutiérrez is the first to take to the track with his Sauber equipped with rain tires. At Ferrari, however, it’s time for relaxation. Alonso is taking a family photo with his mechanics while Felipe Massa is signing autographs on the arms of his team members.

Gutiérrez sets the first time on the timesheet with 1:34.671. He improves it to 1:34.129 a few moments later. After 10 minutes, he is still the only one to have completed a timed lap.

Lewis Hamilton, who was not satisfied with his day yesterday, is on a flying lap but decides to return to the pits before crossing the finish line. There are 45 minutes left and Gutiérrez is still the fastest and also the most active on track with 7 laps under his belt.

Lewis Hamilton continues to struggle with taming his Mercedes this weekend. The Briton complains of an issue at the back of his car and returns to the pits. There is no one else on track with a little over 30 minutes remaining in the session.

Everyone has completed at least one reconnaissance lap except for the two Toro Rosso drivers. Vergne and Ricciardo are staying dry for now. JEV is talking with his team on the pit wall.

Silence broken by Nico Hülkenberg. The German driver is followed by Max Chilton. Three drivers on track with Bianchi. There’s a crowd on the circuit as we begin the last half-hour of testing. Max Chilton records the second-fastest time of the morning with 1:36.654 while Bianchi displaces Gutiérrez with a time of 1:33.412.

More than 20 minutes remain in this last session, and the fastest man on track is now Sebastian Vettel with a time of 1:31.857. He leads Valtteri Bottas in the Williams. Has Lewis Hamilton figured out what was wrong since the start of the weekend? In any case, the 2008 champion completes a lap in 1:29.980, more than a second faster than Gutiérrez, who is back at the front. Nico Hülkenberg, despite his third-fastest time, complains about the behavior of his Sauber in the corners.

10 minutes from the checkered flag, the rain stopped over the Interlagos circuit. This is the moment Mark Webber chose to take to the track and set the best time of the morning at 1:29.493. The Australian improved significantly on the next lap: 1:27.891. An improvement made possible by intermediate tires.

One minute before the end of the session, Rosberg, Alonso, Massa, and Button do not have a timed lap and they will not set one before the end.

This FP3 session ends with Mark Webber setting the fastest time at 1:27.891, ahead of Grosjean and Kovalainen. Bottas and Hülkenberg complete the Top 5.

Free Practice 3 Classification of the Brazilian Grand Prix