Hamilton leads Verstappen by over 0.4s in FP3

©WRi2

Lewis Hamilton will start qualifying for the Malaysian Grand Prix as favourite for pole position after topping the times by over 0.4s in final practice.

Having been 0.2s clear of team-mate Nico Rosberg on Friday, Hamilton extended his advantage over the championship leader to 0.6s with an impressive qualifying simulation run in FP3. The gap to Rosberg was so big he found himself beaten to second place by Max Verstappen, while Rosberg was less than 0.1s clear of Kimi Raikkonen in fourth.

Raikkonen and team-mate Sebastian Vettel were separated by just 0.02s, with Vettel closing the gap on his second flying lap on soft tyres. Raikkonen failed to improve with an extra lap but Vettel's time suggested there is sufficient life in the soft tyres to carry out two laps on each run in qualifying.

Vettel did not enjoy a completely smooth session, however, with the four-time world champion spinning at the final corner as he took a wide line, wiping out the bollard which marks the pit entry.

Daniel Ricciardo was sixth fastest in the final session having completed his low fuel lap much earlier than his rivals. The top ten was completed by Nico Hulkenberg, Valtteri Bottas, Carlos Sainz and Felipe Massa, while Sergio Perez in 11th was just 0.037s off Sainz, suggesting a close fight for Q3 this afternoon.

Jenson Button will have a place in the top ten in his sights after ending final practice in 12th place, just 0.141s away from ninth, but team-mate Fernando Alonso took a different approach to FP3. Having received an additional 15-place grid penalty - taking him up to 45 in total - for new power unit components, Alonso, who had been in the top ten in both of Friday's sessions, was slowest as he focused on race pace.

Vettel wasn't the first driver to spin at the final corner during the session, with Esteban Gutierrez losing the rear of his Haas and ending up pointing the wrong way on the outside of the track. Rosberg was on a fast lap at the time and had to slow to avoid running wide towards the Mexican.

At the exact same time as Gutierrez's spin, team-mate Romain Grosjean was causing more yellow flags by running wide at Turn 6. The Frenchman caught a slide but ended up taking a trip through the gravel before rejoining, and returned to the pits to have his team check the car after complaining of handling problems.

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PosDriverTeamTimeLaps
01Lewis HamiltonMercedes1:34.43416
02Max VerstappenRed Bull1:34.87914
03Nico RosbergMercedes1:35.05316
04Kimi RaikkonenFerrari1:35.15015
05Sebastian VettelFerrari1:35.17014
06Daniel RicciardoRed Bull1:35.46122
07Nico HulkenbergForce India1:35.77616
08Valtteri BottasWilliams1:35.90217
09Carlos SainzToro Rosso1:36.22218
10Felipe MassaWilliams1:36.22720
11Sergio PerezForce India1:36.25915
12Jenson ButtonMcLaren1:36.36311
13Esteban GutierrezHaas1:36.55314
14Jolyon PalmerRenault1:36.60420
15Romain GrosjeanHaas1:36.68715
16Kevin MagnussenRenault1:36.74119
17Daniil KvyatToro Rosso1:36.75220
18Marcus EricssonSauber1:36.76519
19Felipe NasrSauber1:37.10618
20Esteban OconManor1:37.96117
21Pascal WehrleinManor1:38.08913
22Fernando AlonsoMcLaren1:41.19915