British Grand Prix – Free Practice 3: Russell leads a British triple before qualifying

It was under windy, cool weather conditions and a wet track that this third free practice session started. Despite this, the drivers quickly took to the track on intermediate tires, starting with Haas driver Kevin Magnussen, who had to give up his seat to Oliver Bearman on Friday.

Under a slippery track, many drivers were caught off guard, like Max Verstappen, spinning out in the corner following the Wellington straight. A few moments later, it was Leclerc who lost control of his car at the entrance of Copse.

A red flag caused by Pierre Gasly

This is the first event of this session. The Alpine driver put the rear wheel of his single-seater on the white part of the track and lost control of his car. The Frenchman tried to get going again but his Alpine got stuck in the gravel at the second-to-last corner, prompting a suspension of the session after only 8 minutes of running. The Frenchman, already penalized this weekend, was unable to return to the track and therefore only completed one small lap without displaying a time.

During this interruption, the stewards looked into Daniel Ricciardo, who zigzagged in the pit lane, which is dangerous, especially because mechanics were close to his car. An investigation will take place at the end of the session to determine whether the Australian deserves a penalty or not.

After 5 minutes of break, the drivers returned to the track, still on intermediate tires, with rain intensifying throughout the session and a very tricky track for the drivers, as seen with Valtteri Bottas, who spun like the Dutch driver earlier in the session approaching the Wellington straight.

The British in the spotlight

In the rain, the British, accustomed to this type of weather, dominated the top 3 positions with George Russell leading the way, bringing a Mercedes one-two as Lewis Hamilton took second place, only 35 milliseconds behind his teammate. The Mercedes, arriving this weekend with many developments, seem to have perfectly optimized their new additions. To complete the podium, we find the British driver Lando Norris in his McLaren, who had led the first two Friday sessions, a first for McLaren since the 2011 Brazilian Grand Prix.

Behind them, Ferrari and Red Bull seem to be a bit behind, but can still hope for a good result this weekend and will be in the battle for the top positions. On the French side, Gasly, who had an accident, took the 20th position while Esteban Ocon took the 16th place, nearly 3 seconds behind leader George Russell. See you at 4pm for the qualifications.

The results of Free Practice 3 of the British Grand Prix 2024