Oscar Piastri: the fastest in the final practice sessions for the Australian Grand Prix

The final practice session of the weekend has concluded. Oscar Piastri sets the fastest time with a 1:15.921, followed by George Russell and Max Verstappen.

Photo: Mclaren

A session packed with action on track, where all drivers and teams made the most of their time preparing for the first qualifying session of the year. However, the session began with complications for young Haas driver Ollie Bearman, who suffered a serious accident yesterday that prevented him from driving. In this final practice session, another incident took him off track again, further affecting his preparation. It's important to note that, following Ollie Bearman's accident yesterday, the Haas team made a change to the power unit of its car. Another driver with limited time on track was Liam Lawson, who faced problems with his car. His team was forced to change the power unit, which limited his running time and compromised his preparation for qualifying.

On the other hand, Max Verstappen, who yesterday seemed far from the lead and even declared that he thought it was impossible to make Q3, took to the track today with a much stronger performance. The Dutch driver set very competitive times, becoming the leader at times during the session, suggesting that Red Bull has found some solutions for its car. With this performance, Verstappen once again looks strong ahead of qualifying, making it clear that he cannot be ruled out in the fight for pole.

For the Mercedes drivers, George Russell posted the second-fastest time of the session with a 1:15.960, just 0.039 seconds behind Oscar Piastri, who was the fastest. Meanwhile, his teammate Andrea Kimi Antonelli finished in fifth place, showing a solid performance. Both drivers appear very comfortable with the car and have demonstrated good single-lap pace, positioning them as strong contenders for qualifying.

Despite Mercedes' strong performance, McLaren and Ferrari remain the favorites for qualifying.

For Ferrari, their drivers posted very fast laps, and Lewis Hamilton looked much more comfortable in the car compared to yesterday's sessions, indicating progress in his adaptation to the car.

As for McLaren, they showed they are ready to fight for the top spots on the grid. Although Oscar Piastri posted the best time, his teammate Lando Norris couldn't complete his fastest lap, having eased off the accelerator before closing it. Still, his times in the first two sectors were impressive, and had he completed the lap, he had enough pace to take the lead.

Williams continues to surprise, as both drivers, who have stated in several interviews that their goal is to fight for the midfield, managed to set top-five times during the session. The team performed well on hard tires, taking advantage of the grip they provide. However, they struggled a bit more on soft tires, although they are still very close to the strongest teams. This indicates that Williams could challenge in qualifying and enter the fight for top positions.

On the other hand, Aston Martin, Alpine, and Haas have struggled more in this session. Their drivers have made more mistakes, and the cars don't seem entirely comfortable on track, complicating their qualifying hopes. In contrast, Sauber and Racing Bulls have achieved good pace, which could work in their favor in qualifying. Both teams have put in solid performances and could surprise in the fight for mid-field positions.

With all this, the fight for pole is very close, as the teams' performances have been fairly even. However, this race has a unique history: most of its winners haven't been those who took pole positions, but rather those who started from the front rows.

Furthermore, with the high forecast of rain for tomorrow's race, anything can happen. Strategies and tire management will play a key role, and the uncertain weather could lead to surprises in the fight for victory.

Top 5 FP3:

Piastri 1.15.921

Russell 1.15.960

Verstappen 1.16.002

Leclerc 1.16.188

Antonelli 1.16.206