Norris Tops Singapore FP3, Leads McLaren’s Strong Showing

McLaren’s Lando Norris set the pace in the final practice session at Singapore, outperforming Mercedes’ George Russell and teammate Oscar Piastri, solidifying his confidence ahead of the qualifying session.

After a heavy downpour in the evening in Singapore, drivers returned to a green track at the Marina Bay Circuit. Several took to the track as soon as the green light signalled the start of the session to get laps in on the fresh asphalt.

However, a red flag was quickly deployed because a… large lizard was on the track! A monitor lizard, a common species in this part of the world, had appeared near the pit lane entrance, leading to the session being interrupted to safely remove it.

Once the session resumed, Valtteri Bottas switched to soft tyres, as did his teammate Guanyu Zhou, while the other drivers were on mediums. Oscar Piastri set the provisional fastest time with a 1:32.957, ahead of the Mercedes drivers and Alonso, while the Aston Martins were over a second and a half off the pace.

Max Verstappen went quicker with a 1:32.044, and Lando Norris slotted into second place, two-tenths behind. Sergio Pérez then took second place, confirming improved form from Red Bull. Charles Leclerc set the fifth-fastest time, ahead of Alex Albon and Nico Hülkenberg.

Verstappen improved to a 1:31.630, with Norris moving back up to second, but four-tenths adrift. Franco Colapinto was the third driver to switch to soft tyres but could only manage the tenth-fastest time. Sainz took second place.

Norris placed himself second, and Leclerc topped the session with a 1:31.525. Albon clipped the wall on the inside of a fast corner and appeared to have damaged his wheel. However, the mechanics were not concerned, and it might have been just a punctured tyre.

Colapinto improved to seventh place, and the frontrunners then switched to soft tyres. Russell set the fastest time with a 1:30.125, and Albon moved into second, nine-tenths behind. Piastri posted a time three-tenths off, in second place, ahead of Hamilton.

Max Verstappen could not better a time three-tenths off Russell on soft tyres, unlike Lando Norris who took the lead with a lap of 1:29.646. Franco Colapinto moved back ahead of Alex Albon into sixth place.

Charles Leclerc complained of a car difficult to drive during his final runs, citing a significant lack of grip, and he was unable to improve his time. Esteban Ocon improved his lap but could do no better than 16th.

Lap times were not improved during this last attempt by all drivers, so Norris retains the fastest time of this FP3 session with a solid margin over Russell. Oscar Piastri confirms McLaren’s strong form in third position.

Verstappen is fourth, nearly a second ahead of Leclerc and Sainz, followed by Hamilton and the Williams duo of Albon and Colapinto. Alonso is in the top ten ahead of Tsunoda and the Haas drivers. Gasly is 14th ahead of Pérez and Ocon, with Ricciardo, Stroll, and the Aston Martin drivers completing the standings.

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Norris Fastest in FP3 – Outpaces Russell and Piastri Norris Fastest in FP3 – Outpaces Russell and Piastri