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Oscar Piastri Leads Final Practice at Australian Grand Prix
In a noteworthy performance at the Australian Grand Prix, Oscar Piastri, driving for McLaren, clocked the fastest time in the final practice session, marking a significant moment as he seeks to clinch his first home race victory. His time of 1:15.921 edged out Mercedes’ George Russell by just 0.039 seconds, while reigning world champion Max Verstappen of Red Bull closely followed, within a tenth of a second of Piastri’s leading mark.
Piastri’s teammate, Lando Norris, displayed strong pace but ultimately finished in 10th place after an unfortunate mistake in the latter part of his lap when he anticipated a potential top-three finish.
Ferrari, which had shown promise as McLaren’s main rival during Friday’s practices, struggled during the final session. Charles Leclerc, who had been the pace-setter the day before, could only manage a fourth-place finish, 0.267 seconds off Piastri’s time, attributing his performance to excessive oversteer.
Lewis Hamilton, three-time Australian GP winner, had a challenging session, finishing eighth after faltering during a key qualifying simulation due to an error in the first sector. Despite his subdued feedback on the team radio, his performance indicated he was nearly half a second off the leading pace.
In an interesting turn, young driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli, replacing Hamilton at Mercedes, delivered a commendable performance, securing fifth place. Meanwhile, Williams proved to be the midfield team to watch, with Carlos Sainz narrowly beating teammate Alex Albon for sixth position.
Verstappen, who is on the hunt for a fifth consecutive drivers’ championship, improved notably from his previous outings. However, his new teammate, Liam Lawson, faced difficulties, managing only two laps due to a power unit issue that curtailed his practice session.
British rookie Oliver Bearman experienced a challenging start to his full F1 season, facing his second accident in as many days. After missing much of the previous practice due to a crash, he spun his Haas into a gravel trap midway through this session, which severely limited his track time to only 40 minutes out of three available. Fortunately, the car did not sustain major damage and is expected to be ready for qualifying.
Australian GP Practice Three Timesheet
| Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1) Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 1:15.921 |
| 2) George Russell | Mercedes | +0.039 |
| 3) Max Verstappen | Red Bull | +0.081 |
| 4) Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | +0.267 |
| 5) Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | +0.285 |
| 6) Carlos Sainz | Williams | +0.331 |
| 7) Alex Albon | Williams | +0.337 |
| 8) Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | +0.457 |
| 9) Yuki Tsunoda | RB | +0.534 |
| 10) Lando Norris | McLaren | +0.676 |
| 11) Gabriel Bortoleto | Sauber | +0.786 |
| 12) Pierre Gasly | Alpine | +0.798 |
| 13) Isack Hadjar | RB | +0.811 |
| 14) Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | +1.027 |
| 15) Jack Doohan | Alpine | +1.072 |
| 16) Nico Hulkenberg | Sauber | +1.225 |
| 17) Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | +1.349 |
| 18) Esteban Ocon | Haas | +1.452 |
| 19) Oliver Bearman | Haas | No time set |
| 20) Liam Lawson | Red Bull | No time set |
Upcoming Schedule for the Australian GP
Saturday, March 15
4:15 AM: Australian GP Qualifying build-up
5:00 AM: QUALIFYING
7:00 AM: Ted’s Qualifying Notebook
7:30 AM: Qualifying Replay
Sunday, March 16
12:25 AM: F2 Feature Race
2:30 AM: Australian GP build-up
4:00 AM: THE AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX
6:00 AM: GP Reaction – Chequered Flag
7:00 AM: Ted’s Notebook
7:55 AM: Race Replay
Source
www.skysports.com