As expected, it rained heavily this Saturday morning on the legendary asphalt Silverstone Circuit, in the Formula 1 British GP. So, the third free practice session was held on a very fine wet asphalt. In this way, a session often used to carry out the final qualifying test where the car is somewhat unloaded for the fight for pole and where the drivers test configuration changes designed during the night to improve their ‘qualy’ cars, it became a pure intermediates test that only serves to get information in case of rain in the race this Sunday.
However, facing today’s classification (4:00 pm), nothing was learned. The water added spice and uncertainty to the fight for the pole The battle is now equal on all fronts of the session against the clock.
In this way, The FP3 time table is very unrepresentative. Russell was first in the complicated conditions with 1’37″529 and Hamilton second in 35 thousandths. The two Mercedes in front. They set the best time when the track improved and suddenly it rained heavily, so they had no one to beat. Norris finished 3rd at 0″185 and Sainz, 4th at 0″610. Verstappen was 5th at 0.864, ahead of Leclerc (6th) and Piastri (7th), with Fernando Alonso eighth position at 1.411, overtaking ‘Checo’ Pérez in the end, who was 9th at 1.755 better.
These times should be taken with a grain of salt not only because ‘qualifying’ should be dry, but because they are free 3 times before, just before qualifying, and what nobody wants to do in the session that that is too dangerous and suffer. an accident or damage the floor of the car using a track exit. The times, then, depend more on the risks the drivers are willing to take and the time on the track where they do their times, with more or less water.
In the race it could rain and everyone worked on the intermediates
The chance of rain for the start time of the race is 45% and 75% for the time before., so all drivers are very good at trying to learn from wet asphalt by riding intermediates. All except Pierre Gasly who went into the gravel and barely got on.
Verstappen and McLaren, fight for pole
On Friday, in the dry, all the teams saved a lot and of those at the top only McLaren seemed to be pushing. But Verstappen and the Mercedes did not show up. Free Practice 3 was supposed to be the stage to clarify some doubts before ‘qualification’, but F1 enthusiasts were left without any sign of the trend after the cars turned in the dry on a track that will now be colder than yesterday.
All this can mean that the teams reach the classification without too many conclusions or, at least, without everything under control. And that’s always good for excitement and spectacle. The water will add more tension, but from now on the water must loosen and the clouds move away before qualifying. The question remains to know how the track will look and see the speed at which it improves during the ‘qualy’, another element of excitement in a match expected to be even.
Ferrari, 4th car and Alonso, going for Q3
In its part, Ferrari It is expected to be the fourth best car because of how much they suffer in fast corners and it seems difficult for Sainz and Leclerc may qualify for the post position. Meanwhile, Fernando Alonso, who wants it to rain this Sunday to have more chances to score, is aiming for Q3, with an engine without problems and a modified wing for details of Silverstone which seems to offer better performance.
Despite this, the track was not good for an Aston Martin that should have improved a lot. Alonso He will try to get into that Top-10, knowing it will be complicated.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Rose Herman and I work as an author for Today Times Live. My expertise lies in writing about sports, a passion of mine that has been with me since childhood. As part of my job, I provide comprehensive coverage on everything from football to tennis to golf.
