Verstappen finishes third free practice in Spain in P3

Published on 15 August 2020 by Kees-Jan Koster

Max Verstappen finished the third free practice for the Spanish Grand Prix in third position. The Dutchman did ten laps on the 4.655-kilometre-long Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya and set a 1:17.737 as his fastest time. Lewis Hamilton was the fastest, with teammate Valtteri Bottas right behind him.

It is almost thirty degrees in Montmeló when the third and final free practice starts. Romain Grosjean forms together with Kevin Magnussen and Carlos Sainz the first group of drivers to come out on track for an installation lap. Lando Norris is the first to set a time.

Only halfway the session, Max Verstappen comes out of his pit box. Valtteri Bottas leads the leader board with a 1:17.971. Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc, Daniil Kvyat, Carlos Sainz and Kimi Räikkönen form the top six.

Max sets a 1:18.487 in his first timed lap on the soft tyres, putting him in third position. The gap to Bottas (on the same compound) is at that time more than half a second. After two cooldown laps, Max improves his time with more than three tenths, before returning to the team. He is now within two tenths of the Mercedes.

The track conditions seem to improve during the session. Valtteri Bottas sets on a new set of soft tyres a 1:17.373, strengthening his lead.

Max comes out for another run just under fifteen minutes before the end of the session. On a fresh set of the red marked softs the Dutchman sets a 1:17.737. In the meantime, Lewis Hamilton has taken the lead from teammate Bottas by setting a 1:17.222.

The remainder of the session is abruptly cut short when Esteban Ocon after turn tree hits the barrier. The Frenchman had to brake firmly for the slower Kevin Magnussen, losing the control over his Renault. This meant a code red and with only two minutes to go the end of the final free practice. Lewis Hamilton finishes the session fastest. Valtteri Bottas, Max Verstappen, Carlos Sainz, Sergio Pérez and Charles Leclerc complete the top six.

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Results third free practice Spain: