Nicholas Latifi leads a practice session for the first time in F1 as the Williams driver takes advantage of a drying track to overtake Charles Leclerc; Watch Hungarian GP qualifying live on Sky Sports F1 from 2.30pm on Saturday
Last update: 30/07/22 14:33
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Nicholas Latifi took advantage of the improving conditions in Hungary to set the fastest time in practice three!
Nicholas Latifi took advantage of the improving conditions in Hungary to set the fastest time in practice three!
Nicholas Latifi pulled off a major upset as the Williams driver took advantage of a drying track to overtake Charles Leclerc with the fastest time in final practice for the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Ferrari’s Leclerc had led the timing for much of the session, but during a frantic final four minutes following a red flag activated by Sebastian Vettel crashing into the barrier, Latifi was able to run his intermediate tires very well
It is the first time Latifi, who is the only driver yet to score a World Championship point this season, has topped an F1 practice session, with his 1:41.480 beating Leclerc by 0.6 seconds.
Alexander Albon underlined Williams’ ability in the wet, finishing third, while World Championship leader Max Verstappen was fourth despite opting to do far less running than most drivers.
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Sebastian Vettel finds the barrier at Turn 10 and brings out the red flag in Practice 3.
Sebastian Vettel finds the barrier at Turn 10 and brings out the red flag in Practice 3.
Leclerc, who survived a scare of his own while spinning at Turn 3, looked set to maintain the lead he had over Red Bull in dry conditions on Friday, but an uncertain forecast for the rest of Saturday sets up a potentially exciting qualifying session.
Although George Russell moved up to fifth in the closing stages, Mercedes struggled to generate tire temperatures in the wet and cooler conditions, with Lewis Hamilton in 11th after repeating expressing frustration with his team’s performance.
Fernando Alonso, always a threat in wet conditions, was sixth for Alpine, ahead of the second Ferrari of Carlos Sainz.
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Intrigue is built in wet
After a heavy downpour shortly before the start of the session, it was unclear whether third practice would start on time, but the light at the end of the pit lane turned green as planned and the Ferraris were the first cars to face the conditions.
Leclerc quickly shot to the top of the time sheet, seemingly in a league of his own. Then more rain fell, preventing him – or anyone else – from improving on the lead time.
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Great car control by Charles Leclerc at turn three to keep his car on the track after a big 360 spin!
Great car control by Charles Leclerc at turn three to keep his car on the track after a big 360 spin!
Alpine’s decision to experiment early with intermediate tires at one point seemed significant. As the rain eased, the entire field moved away from full rain during the second half of the session.
Vettel, who was showing reasonable speed in third at the time, pushed too hard as the session entered the final 10 minutes and found the barrier at Turn 10, leaving his Aston Martin mechanics with recovery work to carry out before classification.
The session resumed with four minutes remaining, leaving time for one more flying lap for whoever wanted it, with Leclerc and Verstappen initially occupying most of the spectators’ attention.
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Pierre Gasly takes a lap in the closing stages of Practice 3.
Pierre Gasly takes a lap in the closing stages of Practice 3.
Verstappen was fastest, before Leclerc improved that time by a full second, but after nothing, Latifi and Albon moved through to take first and third.
Although the result adds no points for Williams, who are bottom of the constructors’ standings with just three points, it brought rare smiles to their garage.
Regardless of the conditions, Leclerc, who leads Verstappen by 63 points in the World Championship after falling from the lead at last weekend’s French GP, will start as favourite.