Italian GP FP3: Norris lays down a marker as Monza compresses into tenths
Lando Norris lit up a sun‑splashed final practice at Monza, topping the times for McLaren with a 1:19.331 as the entire field squeezed into less than a second. Charles Leclerc came roaring back late on to split the papaya cars by just 0.021s, while Oscar Piastri made it a McLaren 1-3 ahead of Max Verstappen and George Russell.
It was one of those classic Saturday mornings in Italy: blue sky, thin air, and tow games already bubbling. Yuki Tsunoda drew first blood with a 1:20.775 before the inevitable scruff of a Monza FP3 crept in—Isack Hadjar, Franco Colapinto and Oliver Bearman all dusted off the gravel early. Verstappen put Red Bull on top on softs with a 1:19.688, Hamilton briefly hustled a medium-tyre lap to P2, and Ferrari flickered between menace and mess. Leclerc ran wide at Parabolica, then later pinged gravel at the second Lesmo.
Russell, after engine gremlins on Friday, found a cleaner rhythm for Mercedes and punched in fifth, while rookie teammate Kimi Antonelli reported derates en route to ninth. Somewhere in the middle of it all, Verstappen and Esteban Ocon got a little too close for comfort—Max made his views plain over the radio.
As the clock bled into the final 20 minutes, soft tyres went on and the pace sharpened. Norris fired McLaren to the top, Piastri tucked in neatly behind, then Verstappen split them. Leclerc, urged on by the grandstands, tidied up his act on his last effort to miss Norris by a flicker—0.021s—with Monza’s slipstream lottery ensuring nobody felt truly safe.
It wasn’t just the headline names, either. Gabriel Bortoleto continued an eye‑catching weekend for Kick Sauber, sixth on the sheet and within a quarter of a second of the top. Alex Albon kept Williams in the mix in tenth, while Lewis Hamilton slotted seventh for Ferrari, a couple of tenths shy of Norris. The pack is covered, the margins are cruel, and qualifying’s going to hinge on who nails the out‑lap choreography and who gets stranded without a tow.
FP3 classification
1. Lando Norris, McLaren – 1:19.331
2. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari +0.021
3. Oscar Piastri, McLaren +0.165
4. Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing +0.167
5. George Russell, Mercedes +0.184
6. Gabriel Bortoleto, Kick Sauber +0.227
7. Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari +0.267
8. Isack Hadjar, Racing Bulls +0.272
9. Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes +0.365
10. Alexander Albon, Williams +0.389
11. Nico Hülkenberg, Kick Sauber +0.406
12. Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin +0.530
13. Carlos Sainz, Williams +0.576
14. Franco Colapinto, Alpine +0.703
15. Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull Racing +0.728
16. Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls +0.801
17. Oliver Bearman, Haas +0.878
18. Pierre Gasly, Alpine +0.916
19. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin +0.916
20. Esteban Ocon, Haas +0.973
What to watch for in qualifying
– Tows and traffic: Expect choreographed out‑laps and a few elbows out at the Parabolica line. Miss the slipstream and you’ll pay for it.
– Ferrari’s fine margins: Leclerc found time when it mattered after a choppy start; Hamilton’s banker on mediums suggests there’s more to come on softs.
– McLaren’s edge: The car looks planted in the quick stuff, and Norris in particular is threading the needle through Ascari.
– Red Bull’s read: Verstappen’s base pace is there, but they’ll want cleaner prep laps and a friendlier gap in traffic.
Monza’s given us a grid’s worth of hope in a handful of tenths. Bring on qualifying.
