A filmmaker with a soft spot for Ronnie Peterson, Gilles Villeneuve, Mika Hakkinen and above all, Tazio Nuvolari and Ayrton Senna, is also a diehard Formula One fan since the age of 4 (mid-90's). An avid researcher of the past of Grand Prix Racing since before it was even named F1, and with a thirst for knowledge of the ins and outs of the actuality of the sport, as well as for the technical aspects that define it, is a member of GPblog since 2023, where he has put his love of racing to good use.
With FP1 and FP2 already in the books it looks like Ferrari and McLaren are the strongest heading into the final practice session of the weekend ahead of qualifying. Mercedes while strong over a race distance seem far off on one lap pace and Red Bull appear to be struggling and are unable to match its rivals both in qualifying simulation as well as long runs, will they be able to turn their weekend around? It's FP3 of the Australian Grand Prix.
F1 LIVE: FP3 of the Australian Grand Prix
As it stands in Melbourne
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Leading up to the weekend proportions seemed to suggest that McLaren would be on top with Red Bull close behind and Mercedes lurking close to the two top teams and Ferrari in a close fourth. However, as the sessions got underway, Ferrari and McLaren proved to have an edge on their rivals with Charles Leclerc proving to be the faster Scuderia driver ahead of teammate Lewis Hamilton, albeit with the seven-time world champion bridging a 6 tenths deficit by 2 tenths from on session to the next.
At McLaren both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are looking to be evenly matched, as they both seek to eek out the other to be declared the Woking-based team's chosen contender for the Drivers' title. At Mercedes, as in Red Bull Racing, proportions seem to be clearly siding with the veteran drivers as their rookie teammates, and in the case of Liam Lawson, vastly inexperienced, trail their teams' leaders by significant amounts of time.
However, neither the German squad nor the Austrian seem to be contenders for the win in Australia, although if Mercedes manage to extract performance from the C5's, then they may join the fray with Ferrari and McLaren. On Red Bull Racing the situation looks more complex as the drivers have to fight a rather indocile front and a snappy rear costing them overall lap time that will see them unable to contest the win in Melbourne. Don't miss the next chapter in the championship fight: FP3 of the Australian Grand Prix.
Results of FP2 of the Australian Grand Prix
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