Spanish GP Final Practice: Oscar Piastri Leads McLaren 1-2 Over Lando Norris

Oscar Piastri recorded a superb lap time to place him at the top of the final practice session for the Spanish Grand Prix, ahead of his McLaren teammate Lando Norris.

Piastri finished half a second quicker than Norris, suggesting that McLaren has not been negatively impacted by the FIA`s tightened regulations regarding flexible wings, which many anticipated would shake up the competitive order.

Charles Leclerc of Ferrari was third quickest, but was 0.743 seconds adrift of Piastri`s leading pace. Piastri currently holds a three-point advantage over Norris in the Drivers` Championship standings.

Lando Norris went wide on his initial run using soft tyres at the high-speed Turn 9, meaning his best lap was set on older rubber. Nevertheless, Piastri looks like the driver to beat heading into qualifying later on Saturday.

Reflecting on the performance, 2016 F1 world champion Nico Rosberg stated, “We don`t need any caveats – that was a monumental performance from McLaren.”

“Absolutely astounding to us, we seriously didn`t expect them to be that fast. Genuinely impressive.”

He added, “It kind of reminded me a bit of my Mercedes days here, just in a different category. The car is absolutely planted out there, and Oscar delivered another perfect lap. That sent a significant warning to the competition.”

George Russell had topped the timesheets after the first round of laps but finished the session in fourth place. Max Verstappen appeared dissatisfied with his car, ending up in fifth and almost a second behind the fastest time.

Verstappen has won the last three races held in Barcelona but now faces a challenging task to reduce his 25-point deficit to Piastri in the championship.

The Racing Bulls pair, Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson, secured sixth and tenth positions respectively. Lewis Hamilton continued to struggle, finishing ninth. Mercedes` Kimi Antonelli was seventh, and local favorite Fernando Alonso was eighth.

Elsewhere on the grid, Williams driver Alex Albon encountered a reliability problem that kept him sidelined in the garage for the latter half of the session. Similar to Friday, the practice session passed without any major incidents.

Spanish GP Practice Three Results