Mercedes duo rules again in FP3 but Verstappen closes in

Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas remained unchallenged in the Austrian Grand Prix's third and final practice session on Saturday, the duo heading into qualifying as the outright favourites.

Hamilton held an 0.174s edge over his teammate but the gap to third place man Max Verstappen  was the smallest it has been since the start of the race weekend, with the Red Bull charger just 0.283s adrift from Hamilton.

Sergio Perez confirmed Racing Point's dark horse status while Ferrari's Charles Leclerc rounded off the top five. Overall, just over a second separated the top 10 contenders.

• 2020 Austrian Grand Prix Free Practice 3 - Results

With two practice sessions and significant mileage under their belt, drivers took to the track for the final dress rehearsal before this afternoon's qualifying with adequate knowledge about their equipment, their strong points and weaknesses.

Extensive analysis and subsequent changes implied that lap times were set to improve at the Red Bull Ring, basking in a sunny 21° C.

McLaren's Lando Norris and Haas' Kevin Magnussen were the first drivers to venture out for installation laps, but the action remained subdued in the opening minutes of the session.

McLaren's Carlos Sainz set the first fastest lap but the Spaniard was quickly overhauled by Bottas, before Vettel and then Hamilton took command.

But just 20 minutes in, Williams' Nicholas Latifi lost it on the exit of Turn 1, the rookie clobbering the outside barrier and ripping off the FW43's nose.

The mishap and sizeable hit brought out the red flag and the prospect of a heavy workload for the Williams crews before qualifying.

The session resumed with 26 minutes left on the clock and with Hamilton leading the field.

The Briton was sticking to the medium tyres as he mounted a challenge on his own best time of 1m05.140s. But Vettel, shod with Pirelli's soft rubber, then beat the latter's benchmark.

But the German's name at the top of the timing screens was almost immediately displaced to second by Leclerc who shaved 0.148s off his teammate's best.

The Monegasque's lead was also short lived however as the Mercedes stealth fighters resumed their dominance, with Hamilton putting in a 1m04.130s that edged Bottas by 0.147s.

The commanding duo concluded FP3 at the top of the time sheet, but Red Bull's Max Verstappen closed the gap with the Black Arrows, finishing the session third, 0.283s behind the pacesetters.

Racing Point's Sergio Perez clocked in fourth ahead of Leclerc, Alex Albon and Vettel, while Lance Stroll, Pierre Gasly and Norris rounded off the top ten.

The Renault pair of Ocon and Ricciardo wound up P11 and P12, heading Sainz, Kvyat and Grosjean.

George Russell's productive efforts landed the Williams driver in 16th position, a commendable performance that outshone Magnussen, Giovinazzi, Raikkonen and Latifi.

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