Marco Rossi · F1 Correspondent
Max Verstappen showed once more at Interlagos what his car is capable of, before a new power unit sends him to the back of the grid on Sunday.
Max Verstappen set the fastest lap in third practice for the São Paulo Grand Prix on Saturday morning at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace, a 1:11.622, just ahead of newly crowned world champion Andrea Kimi Antonelli. It changes little about the balance of power for Sunday's race: Red Bull have fitted a new internal combustion engine, turbocharger and exhaust this weekend, exceeding the season allocation. The Dutchman will therefore start from the back of the grid, whatever happens in qualifying in the afternoon.
Fastest time, but no consequence for the race
Just 0.025 seconds separated Verstappen from Antonelli at the end, a margin that would normally have set him up strongly for qualifying. Lando Norris completed the leading group in third, 0.131 seconds down and 0.106 seconds behind Antonelli. The Red Bull looked compact and well balanced over a lap, at exactly the moment when it counts least for the starting grid.
Verstappen himself took the situation with humour. “Qualifying doesn't really matter that much, to be honest,” he told Viaplay with a laugh, adding with a view to his comeback drives at Interlagos in recent years: “Sure, it was fun, but I don't really want to do it here every year.” For him, the session was therefore mainly a setup run.
Mercedes strong, but with a burden of their own
That Antonelli once again featured at the front in second place is hardly a surprise after his title win in Mexico. Mercedes arrive with the chance to wrap up the constructors' championship early in São Paulo too, and a car that already topped second practice on Friday fits that picture. George Russell put both Mercedes in the top four, finishing fourth 0.184 seconds down and just 0.053 seconds behind Norris in third.
At Mercedes, too, the starting position for the race is more complicated than the lap time suggests. Russell has to drop five places on the grid after fitting his sixth internal combustion engine, which forces the team to rethink its strategy for Sunday even if the pure car performance is there.
Ferrari: Leclerc solid, Hamilton's session cut short
Charles Leclerc slotted into the wider leading group in fifth, 0.274 seconds down, confirming the form Ferrari have shown so far this weekend. His team-mate Lewis Hamilton ended up 0.937 seconds behind him in twelfth, a gap that had less to do with a dip in Hamilton's form than with technical problems. Hamilton's practice ended early after vibrations and then smoke at the rear of his Ferrari, with the cause still unclear.
Both Ferrari drivers have to take ten-place grid penalties for new internal combustion engines anyway, so the FP3 times mainly served the team for setup work rather than as a direct guide to the grid. Team principal Fred Vasseur had asked the two to talk after their battle in Mexico and said afterwards that it was time to turn the page, a message that could carry real weight given the comeback drive both face on Sunday.
Midfield within striking distance, Pérez under scrutiny
In the midfield, the two Racing Bulls drivers fought the closest battle of the session: Arvid Lindblad took seventh, just 0.111 seconds ahead of Liam Lawson, proof of how close the two cars are. At Audi, Gabriel Bortoleto came out on top in tenth, ahead of Nico Hülkenberg, who was 0.221 seconds further back in thirteenth.
Sergio Pérez provided extra talking points. He also starts from the back of the grid after taking new power unit parts, and he caught the stewards' attention during the session after throwing an object out of his cockpit. Whether a penalty follows was still open at the time of writing. With the penalties for Verstappen, Pérez, Russell, Hamilton and Leclerc, it is clear anyway that the third practice timesheet will say little about the actual starting order on Sunday; the real picture should only emerge in qualifying and the subsequent reshuffling of the grid.
