Lewis Hamilton finished final practice on top at Formula 1's United States Grand Prix, leading Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc into qualifying at Austin. Hamilton was the only driver to break the 1m35s barrier in the final 20 minutes of third practice, as frequent track limits transgressions kept Ferrari team-mate Leclerc from leapfrogging him on the leaderboard.
Following a slow opening quarter, action picked up as Hamilton set a 1m36.716s on softs. His time was soon beaten by Liam Lawson in the Racing Bulls and McLaren's Oscar Piastri, while several heavy hitters kept turning laps on medium tyres. Verstappen went top with a 1m35.702s on the yellow sidewall tyre, despite recurring complaints about his unsettling downshifts. Hamilton swiftly improved with a 1m35.561s, but when Leclerc took command with a 1m35.127s on the slower mediums, it underlined that there was still a lot more pace to find.
In the final 20 minutes, Verstappen adhered to the white lines to set a 1m35.061s and go top, with Red Bull the quickest car through sector one. Hamilton then dipped below the barrier with a 1m34.893s. Track limits, a recurring theme throughout practice, also kept Leclerc from reclaiming first as he dipped over the white line at Turn 10. The Monegasque settled for third, setting up a finely poised qualifying session on Saturday afternoon.
Championship leader Antonelli was fourth ahead of Mercedes team-mate George Russell, with the Silver Arrows appearing to be a half-step behind on pure pace. Piastri was sixth, while Nico Hulkenberg kept Lando Norris from seventh in the Audi. Pierre Gasly was ninth, a full second behind Hamilton, and Isack Hadjar was 10th in the second Red Bull, frustrated by his car's handling.
Source: Autosport F1 News · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing