Results Third Free Practice 2023 Canadian F1 Grand Prix

Event: Canadian F1 Grand Prix
Track: Gilles Villeneuve circuit

Weather: wet 14°C
Tarmac: wet  17°C
Humidity: 91%
Wind: 3.9 km/h NW

FP3 Report

In an impressive display of wet-weather mastery, Max Verstappen commanded the final practice run at the 2023 Canadian F1 Grand Prix, held in Montreal. His Red Bull car stole the limelight as it outpaced Charles Leclerc and Fernando Alonso, setting the stage for a thrilling qualifying event later in the day.

A shift in weather from the mostly dry Friday saw the drivers take on a rain-soaked track. Consequently, the initial portion of the session saw the teams employing extreme wet tyres.

INSIGHTS FROM PRACTICE: Understanding the implications of Friday's interrupted practice in Canada

As the session progressed, the switch to intermediate tyres occurred after about a quarter of an hour, giving teams a chance to explore the optimal tyre transition point under potential qualifying conditions.

Once the intermediate tyres came into play, it was Verstappen and the Ferraris exchanging blows for the fastest lap times. Eventually, the Dutch driving ace outpaced Carlos Sainz by a clear margin of two and a half tenths, clocking a rapid 1m 24.480s.

However, fortune turned against Sainz as he lost control and crashed into the barrier at Turn 1. This unfortunate incident resulted in severe damage to both ends of his SF23 and prompted the deployment of red flags. The incident left his crew with a significant repair task before qualifying.

Once the green flag was waved, Verstappen continued his tour de force, posting a blistering time of 1m 23.106s on the intermediates. This put him ahead of his closest rival, Leclerc, by a gap of 0.291s.

Alonso clocked the third fastest time, although he lagged by over a second from Verstappen. Nonetheless, he finished ahead of Haas' surprise package, Kevin Magnussen, who held fourth place. Sainz, despite his mishap, managed to clinch the fifth spot.

Pierre Gasly came in sixth for Alpine, followed by Canada's own Lance Stroll and Yuki Tsunoda of AlphaTauri - the latter having two close encounters with the barriers after spinning out. Valtteri Bottas, finishing ninth, showcased his ability to multitask, managing a damaged wing mirror while navigating the rainy track.

Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain driving the (44) Mercedes AMG Petronas Hamilton and Mercedes grapple with tyre temperature issues in wet conditions Friday's FP2 leaders, Lewis Hamilton and his Mercedes teammate George Russell, had a less stellar outing, finishing 10th and 15th respectively, as they struggled with tyre temperature issues.

Having put his Friday's engine failure behind him, Nico Hulkenberg of Haas clocked the 11th fastest time, followed by McLaren's duo Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris at 12th and 13th, and Williams' Alex Albon at 14th.

The list continued with Russell and then Nyck de Vries of AlphaTauri in 16th, while Red Bull's Sergio Perez ended up in a disappointing 17th position.

Zhou Guanyu of Alfa Romeo clinched the 18th spot, followed by Esteban Ocon in 19th, who is still on the mend from a water pressure issue that plagued his Alpine in FP2. Logan Sargeant rounded out the field.

Last year's quickest lap time of FP3 was a 1:33.836 min, set by Fernando Alonso with the Alpine A522 driven on a set of intermdiate tyres because it rained.

FP3 Times Table 2023 Canadian GP

✅ Check out our 2023 Canadian F1 GP preview

✅ Check out more posts with related topics: