Russell finds form ahead of Barcelona qualifying as Antonelli's pace is unknown

Still, Kimi Antonelli couldn’t set a competitive lap time after encountering traffic on his final flying laps and, as a result, finished seventh. He will also be investigated for driving erratically after the session.

The two British world champions on the grid, Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton, finished fourth and fifth respectively. Red Bull Racing was also well off Mercedes in FP3. Max Verstappen finished sixth, with a lap seven and a half tenths slower than Russell’s.

The Cadillacs were the first cars to appear on track in the Barcelona heat today, while other drivers, such as Verstappen, Leclerc and Piastri, were either chatting with engineers and mechanics or preparing to get into their cars.

During the first 15 minutes, only Nico Hulkenberg in the Audi joined the Cadillacs. Then, more drivers began entering the track with 40 minutes go. At the halfway point of the final free practice session, Russell led with a 1:16.2 on the soft tyres ahead of his teammate Antonelli and Norris.

With 25 minutes to go, the red flag was waved after Valtteri Bottas got stuck in the gravel trap in Turn 10 after a brake issue. "I lost my brake pedals. It's gone, the pedal is gone. I got very lucky there," the Finnish driver said over the team radio. Cadillac will investigate what happened ahead of qualifying. The session could then resume after a five-minute delay.

During the final ten minutes, drivers went for another attempt on a new set of soft tyres. Russell then improved the quickest lap time by five tenths, and led with a 1:15.6. The two McLarens also improved, but they were more than two tenths behind the British Mercedes driver, while Antonelli was held up by Lance Stroll on his first attempt into Turn 1, and the also encountered traffic on his second try. "It's so unbelievable," the current championship leader said.