George Russell continued to impress at Monza and set the fastest time in the third free practice session before the Italian Formula 1 Grand Prix. The British Mercedes driver recorded a lap of 1:22.219 minutes, which improved his best performance from Friday by about three tenths, BTA reports. Russell became the main favorite for the first position on the starting grid after demonstrating an impressive pace in all practice sessions at the legendary Italian track. The last practice session was especially important for the teams, as in the final 15 minutes almost all drivers simulated qualifying laps on the softest tires.
Initially, Kimi Antonelli led the standings with a time of 1:23.032 minutes. However, the Italian will have a serious challenge in Sunday's race, as as he will start last due to a penalty. Antonelli did not manage to stay at the top for long. Russell quickly improved his time, recording 1:22.687 minutes, and a little later the Briton made another impressive lap and stopped the clocks at 1:22.219. Lewis Hamilton with Ferrari was second, who finished 0.226 seconds behind Russell. Max Verstappen with Red Bull gave the third best time, 0.350 seconds behind the leader.
Kimi Antonelli remained fourth, followed by Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc.
The results of the practice give serious grounds for the expectations of a strong performance for Mercedes in qualifying. “Monza“ is a track where the maximum speed and the efficiency of the car on the long straights are crucial, and Russell seems to have found the right balance between the speed on the straights and the behavior of the car in the corners.
Hamilton and Verstappen were once again in the spotlight.
However, the most interesting moment came after the end of practice. Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen completed their fast laps almost tire to tire, then blocked each other at the first corner. The situation immediately brought back memories of one of the most famous incidents between the two drivers. In 2021, it was at “Monza“ that Hamilton and Verstappen collided in the midst of the battle for the world title. Then the two were eliminated from the race after contact at the first chicane.
Now the consequences were much smaller, but what happened once again showed how small the margin is between two drivers who are fighting for every hundredth of a second. Qualifying is ahead, which will provide the first real answer as to whether Russell's excellent pace from practice can turn into pole position. And for Antonelli, the task will be even more complicated – regardless of the result in qualifying, he will have to start Sunday's race from last position.