George Russell topped final practice at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, with the three title contenders following the Mercedes driver inside the top five.
Russell saved his best lap until late, delaying taking his final set of new soft tires until the other frontrunners had shown their hands.
The Briton set the benchmark at 1m 23.334s, less than 0.3s off Friday’s fastest lap despite the warmer and slower daytime conditions.
Lando Norris, who swept both Friday practice sessions, was second quickest, the championship leader only 0.004s slower. The McLaren was much more adept at keeping its tires alive for the slow and twisty final sector, negating the Mercedes’s gains down the straights in the middle split.
It was much the same difference to Max Verstappen, who was 0.124s off the pace with a similar advantage down the straights but weakness in the final sector, though the Dutchman was quickest in the first sector.
There are still problems confronting the defending champion, however, with Verstappen reporting bouncing after his first flying lap on softs.
“The problem is the car still jumps,” he radioed. “I can’t keep my feet on the pedals.”
Fernando Alonso improved late for Aston Martin to slot into fourth, his deficit 0.251s slower than Russell.
It relegated Oscar Piastri to fifth in the order, the Australian 0.259s off the pace. The championship outside was quicker than teammate Norris in the first and second sectors but lost more than 0.3s in the final split.
Haas teammates Esteban Ocon and Oliver Bearman were just 0.012s further back, the duo split by 0.004s, continuing the team’s impressive Friday form.
Charles Leclerc was eighth and 0.341s adrift for Ferrari ahead of Andrea Kimi Antonelli in the second Mercedes, 0.373 slower than his session-topping teammate.
Antonelli’s flying lap was complicated by a crash in pit lane in the final minutes when both he and Yuki Tsunoda were released from pit lane at roughly the same time from neighboring garages.
Team radio suggested Antonelli wasn’t warned of the Red Bull Racing car before he slammed into its sidepod, breaking his front wing and causing Tsunoda terminal damage that left him unable to complete his final soft run.
The incident will go to the stewards after the session.
It’s the second incident Tsunoda is involved in, with the Japanese driver also facing accusations of impeding Norris early in the session, when he was caught dawdling on the racing line between turns 11 and 12, forcing the title leader to take evasive action off the circuit.
Alex Albon completed the top 10 for Williams — he’ll also see the stewards over an unsafe release from pit lane — ahead of Gabriel Bortoleto, Carlos Sainz, Nico Hulkenberg and Lance Stroll.
Liam Lawson led Racing Bulls teammate Isack Hadjar and Alpine’s Pierre Gasly.
Lewis Hamilton ended up 18th after crashing out of practice halfway through the hour.
The Briton’s Ferrari spun from his control entering Turn 19, a 110-mph bend, and lodged itself into the barriers, triggering a 13-minute red flag.
“Something buckled at the front and snapped the rear,” he radioed before hauling himself from the wreckage. Sparks were sighted from the rear of his car as he straddled the curb on entry, suggesting the car was bottoming out before being turned into the corner.
Hamilton was fourth and fractionally faster than teammate Leclerc at the time before sliding down the order at the resumption.
Franco Colapinto was 19th ahead of the compromised Tsunoda.