Limited track time for Max in FP3

Published on 27 August 2016 by Stefan Meens

After finishing free practice 2 in first, Max Verstappen was not able to build on the encouraging pace shown on Friday. An issue with his gearbox prevented the Dutchman from putting on a show for the thousands of Dutch fans that flocked to the iconic Spa-Francorchamps race track.

At the very front, it was not the Mercedes on top but Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen, followed by Daniel Ricciardo in the RB12. Sebastian Vettel completed the top three.

After the final practice session, Red Bull Racing team boss Christian Horner confirmed Max's gearbox issues. “We're still investigating the problem and we wanted to make sure we had enough time to fix it before qualifying. So we might have lost a bit of time but it won't hurt us for the race, maybe in qualifying. However, we have a lot of useful data from yesterday and luckily the conditions are similar to yesterday as well.”

Esteban Guttierez is the first driver to hit the track. The Mexican also causes the first incident of the session. The Haas F1 driver lifts on the racing line on his cooling down lap going through Eau Rouge. Pascal Wehrlein, in the Manor, is therefore forced to take evasive action not to pile into the back of Guttierez.

After ten minutes, Max heads out for his run. On the long straight, his engine appears to misfire and the youngster returns to pit to have his team investigate the issue. In the end, Max only clocks two laps and does not set a time.

Meanwhile, it is the two Ferraris of Raikkonen and Vettel setting the pace. The Mercedes are concentrating on long runs with Lewis Hamilton wearing a set of softs down to its limit to gain valuable date for the race on Sunday.

Daniel Ricciardo shows Red Bull Racing have the pace by setting the second fastest time of the session. The Australian gained most of his time in the second sector, which appears to be Red Bull strongest part of the Spa circuit.

Belgian Grand Prix - Spa-Francorchamps - Saturday 27 August

RESULTS FREE PRACTICE 3

01  7 Kimi Räikkönen      Ferrari                     1:47.974             11
02  3 Daniel Ricciardo    Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer   1:48.189   +0.215s   18
03  5 Sebastian Vettel    Ferrari                     1:48.297   +0.323s   12
04 77 Valtteri Bottas     Williams Mercedes           1:48.504   +0.530s   17
05 44 Lewis Hamilton      Mercedes                    1:48.635   +0.661s   20
06 27 Nico Hulkenberg     Force India Mercedes        1:48.739   +0.765s   12
07  6 Nico Rosberg        Mercedes                    1:48.742   +0.768s   19
08 19 Felipe Massa        Williams Mercedes           1:48.783   +0.809s   21
09 11 Sergio Perez        Force India Mercedes        1:48.915   +0.941s   12
10  8 Romain Grosjean     Haas Ferrari                1:49.272   +1.298s   16
11 14 Fernando Alonso     McLaren Honda               1:49.453   +1.479s    9
12 21 Esteban Gutierrez   Haas Ferrari                1:49.631   +1.657s   16
13 22 Jenson Button       McLaren Honda               1:49.665   +1.691s   10
14 20 Kevin Magnussen     Renault                     1:49.716   +1.742s   11
15 94 Pascal Wehrlein     MRT Mercedes                1:49.761   +1.787s   15
16 26 Daniil Kvyat        Toro Rosso Ferrari          1:50.023   +2.049s    9
17 55 Carlos Sainz        Toro Rosso Ferrari          1:50.078   +2.104s    9
18 30 Jolyon Palmer       Renault                     1:50.241   +2.267s   11
19 12 Felipe Nasr         Sauber Ferrari              1:50.420   +2.446s   13
20 31 Esteban Ocon        MRT Mercedes                1:50.693   +2.719s   18
21  9 Marcus Ericsson     Sauber Ferrari              1:51.319   +3.345s    5
22 33 Max Verstappen      Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer                         2 

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