Verstappen tops FP3 and throws Red Bull into the mix!

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Max Verstappen edged out Mercedes Lewis Hamilton by just a tenth of a second in the last free practice session before this evening's all-important qualifying stint.

Although it wasn't quite as hot as yesterday afternoon, Bahrain was still basking in scorching heat when FP3 got underway, but it wasn't a mad dash for drivers to rush out in the early stages.

As the session unfolded and teams gradually took to the track, Williams’ Felipe Massa went fastest with a 1:33.720, but this was soon beaten by Red Bull’s Max Verstappen although the lap appeared to be ridden with errors.

The session was interrupted for short period after 35 minutes when Romain Grosjean spun his Haas on the exit of Turn 4. The French driver eventually succeeded however in limping back to the pits although he took no further part in the session.

When the session resumed, Sebastian Vettel vaulted his Ferrari to the top with the top four drivers covered at that point by just five hundreds of a second.

Hamilton set a competitive time only late in the session, ultimately placing himself P2 on the time sheet, using like his colleagues the supersoft compound tyre.

Vettel ended the session P3, narrowly beating Valtteri Bottas and Kimi Raikkonen. Felipe Massa concluded his stint in sixth place ahead of Daniel Ricciardo.

Free Practice 3 results

PosDriverTeamTimeGapLaps
1Max VerstappenRed Bull1:32.194s8
2Lewis HamiltonMercedes1:32.304s+ 0.110s10
3Sebastian VettelFerrari1:32.750s+ 0.556s10
4Valtteri BottasMercedes1:32.754s+ 0.560s13
5Kimi RäikkönenFerrari1:32.785s+ 0.591s9
6Felipe MassaWilliams1:32.801s+ 0.607s12
7Daniel RicciardoRed Bull1:32.809s+ 0.615s8
8Nico HülkenbergRenault1:32.933s+ 0.739s9
9Carlos SainzToro Rosso1:33.604s+ 1.410s18
10Daniil KvyatToro Rosso1:33.744s+ 1.550s11
11Sergio PérezForce India1:33.916s+ 1.722s14
12Fernando AlonsoMcLaren1:33.922s+ 1.728s10
13Pascal WehrleinSauber1:33.947s+ 1.753s15
14Lance StrollWilliams1:33.965s+ 1.771s15
15Stoffel VandoorneMcLaren1:34.027s+ 1.833s15
16Esteban OconForce India1:34.064s+ 1.870s17
17Kevin MagnussenHaas1:34.198s+ 2.004s13
18Romain GrosjeanHaas1:34.205s+ 2.011s14
19Marcus EricssonSauber1:34.268s+ 2.074s15
20Jolyon PalmerRenault1:34.417s+ 2.223s11