𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐮𝐥𝐚 𝟏 𝐇𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟐 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐭 𝟐.

15:00
FP3 is a go!

15:05
Plenty of drivers are happy to sit these early exchanges out, as they bide their time and wait for conditions to become more favourable. But Hamilton has joined the fray for Mercedes, also sporting the hard compound tyre.

15:10
Norris is heading out, shod with a set of the medium compound tyre. How the drivers handle their new tyres is another variable this season - who will nail their tyre management during the race, and who will struggle to get a handle on these new 18-inch monsters?

There are some drivers on the grid renowned for their tyre management, but that could all change in 2022.

15:15
New tyres, new cars - new driver pairings. How will the likes of Russell and Albon get on against their new team mates later on? How Russell attacks this season will be fascinating. Mr Saturday has a reputation over one lap, but he is taking on the man with the most pole positions in F1 history.

15:19
Hamilton and Leclerc are getting racy as the Monegasque sweeps by on a hot lap. He goes top with a 1m 33.797s, on a used set of soft tyres carried over from yesterday.

15:23
Verstappen goes top. By three quarters of a second.
Ouch. That's one way to show the rest how it is done. He sets a 1m 33.035s, 0.762s ahead of Leclerc.

Leclerc spins off!
Oh that's not where that Ferrari should be. He gets a big snap of oversteer, tries to correct and gets a swopper on. At speed, he slides off backwards through the gravel at Turn 11.

Fortunately he isn't beached and is able to get back tot he track under his own steam, and fortunately, he was still on those used tyres.

15:30
Halfway through the session then, and Leclerc has had the biggest moment of the day so far. These cars haven't been pushed to the max just yet, and it will be interesting to see how benign they stay later on when the drivers really put their foot down.

15:34
Albon complains that his tyres are already struggling - those softs have completed six laps so far. The good news is now, no one needs to run the soft compound in the race if they don't want to under the new rules - the old rules often had much of the top 10 starting on the red-marked tyre on race day.

15:41
Into the final twenty minutes, and still Verstappen leads. His time has just come under attack from Sainz though, who has slotted into second, just 0.018s back. Fresh tyres for the Spaniard too, as he seemingly has those understeer problems from yesterday much more under control.

15:43
The times are tumbling here today, as Russell goes... Top! The track is evolving fast, and fuel loads are an unknown, but with the top four separated by less than two tenths of a second, this one is heating up nicely.

CHEQURED FLAG
Verstappen tops FP3
Much as he did last evening, the Dutchman looks the man to beat out there. His 1m 32.544s topped the leader board, a tenth clear of Leclerc and 0.247s ahead of his team mate.

It looked competitive though, with the Ferrari boys and Perez keeping Verstappen honest. Those four seem to be in a class of their own at the moment, Mercedes seemingly the third quickest car as it stands.
.....

17:30

There are a few things that look certain heading into qualifying. The first of which is the form of the reigning world champion.

Max Verstappen has looked incredibly quick so far here, and it looks like the team have given him a car to match.

He finished top in both FP2 and FP3, but he has been pushed hard by Charles Leclerc. The Ferrari was the other pick from testing, and so far the Scuderia have lived up to that promise. Leclerc looks the more comfortable of the two Ferrari drivers at the moment, and is a proven force over one lap.