F1 Live | FP3: 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix
F1 News
- GPblog.com
The third free practice session of the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix will give the teams and drivers one last chance to explore the new circuit on Saturday. Once again all eyes will be on Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton as they prepare for the penultimate race of the season.
LIVEBLOG | Third free practice for the 2021 Saudi Arabia Grand Prix
The British driver did good business on Friday. Hamilton set the fastest lap in both the first and second free practice session, twice ahead of Verstappen. In the first session the difference between both drivers was six-hundredths of a second, but a couple of hours later it increased to almost two tenths.
Verstappen stated at the end of the two sessions that he was not worried about the rest of the weekend. With Red Bull Racing mainly trying things out on Friday the Austrian team did not yet show its best. Verstappen expects to do so in the third free practice session, which will be followed by qualifying a few hours later.
Pierre Gasly was again the big surprise during the first race day. The Frenchman recorded a fourth and third time in turn, which meant he was even faster than Verstappen in the second free practice. Ferrari and Alpine also showed themselves by setting times in the top ten.
Track Guide
The tension rises
With two races left the tension is rising when it comes to the title fight between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton. The difference in points is very little and both drivers are expected to go into the final race weekend with a tie or with a minimal difference. The atmosphere between Mercedes and Red Bull isn't getting any better either, every weekend there are protests or complaints against each other and also this weekend they won't give each other anything anymore.
Besides the battle between rivals Hamilton and Verstappen there is another battle going on. It is very important for Red Bull and Mercedes to win the constructors' championship. This will earn the teams a lot of money which they can invest in the car of next year for example. For Mercedes, who now lead the championship, it is also very important for other reasons. They have won the title seven years in a row now and would like to continue this series. Red Bull would like to end this domination of Mercedes, but the results of Sergio Perez make that very difficult.