Ferrari warns of things to come in FP3
Ferrari has sent out a clear warning signal to its drivers by stretching a lead in the final practice session ahead of qualifying for the Chinese Grand Prix. Sebastian Vettel ended up fastest and Raikkonen second, but both were easily ahead of their competition, lead by Valtteri Bottas.
Max Verstappen was 4th fastest, a tenth ahead of Lewis Hamilton.
Kevin Magnussen kept Haas in the top 10 in 6th position, ahead of a surprising Force India duo in 7th and 8th. The top 10 was completed by Sainz for Renault and Sirotkin for Williams. The latter's performance was a very welcome surprise for the troubled Williams team, the only team yet to score a point this season.
Daniel Ricciardo was meanwhile again struck by reliability issues as he stopped with flames coming out the back of his car after just 3 laps. The team later confirmed the turbo had failed, likely also terminally damaging the MGU-H.
Results
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Car | Time | Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | 1:33.018 | - | 14 |
| 2 | 7 | Kimi Räikkönen | Ferrari | 1:33.469 | +0.451s | 21 |
| 3 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | 1:33.761 | +0.743s | 16 |
| 4 | 33 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Racing Tag Heuer | 1:33.969 | +0.951s | 14 |
| 5 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1:34.057 | +1.039s | 14 |
| 6 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas Ferrari | 1:34.329 | +1.311s | 25 |
| 7 | 11 | Sergio Perez | Force India Mercedes | 1:34.445 | +1.427s | 14 |
| 8 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Force India Mercedes | 1:34.456 | +1.438s | 16 |
| 9 | 55 | Carlos Sainz | Renault | 1:34.582 | +1.564s | 20 |
| 10 | 35 | Sergey Sirotkin | Williams Mercedes | 1:34.741 | +1.723s | 13 |
| 11 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Renault | 1:34.841 | +1.823s | 16 |
| 12 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | McLaren Renault | 1:34.851 | +1.833s | 13 |
| 13 | 2 | Stoffel Vandoorne | McLaren Renault | 1:34.977 | +1.959s | 16 |
| 14 | 28 | Brendon Hartley | Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda | 1:34.991 | +1.973s | 20 |
| 15 | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | Red Bull Racing Tag Heuer | 1:35.061 | +2.043s | 4 |
| 16 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda | 1:35.079 | +2.061s | 16 |
| 17 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Williams Mercedes | 1:35.375 | +2.357s | 16 |
| 18 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Sauber Ferrari | 1:35.497 | +2.479s | 14 |
| 19 | 9 | Marcus Ericsson | Sauber Ferrari | 1:35.679 | +2.661s | 13 |
| 20 | 8 | Romain Grosjean | Haas Ferrari | 1:35.756 | +2.738s | 6 |
