Italian from Mercedes was the fastest with a wide advantage over rivals, while Lewis Hamilton caused the last yellow flag of the session after a heavy crash. Audi placed Hülkenberg and Bortoleto in the top ten before qualifying.
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Kimi Antonelli confirmed Mercedes’ favoritism for qualifying by leading the third and final free practice, FP3, for the Formula 1 Belgian GP, held this Saturday at Spa-Francorchamps. The Italian clocked 1m45.990s and finished ahead of Lando Norris and Max Verstappen. George Russell completed Mercedes’ dominance in fourth, followed by Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc, Oscar Piastri, Nico Hülkenberg, Gabriel Bortoleto, and Isack Hadjar, who closed out the top 10. The session ended under double yellow flags after a heavy crash by Hamilton in the final minutes.
The last free session started at a very calm pace. As is traditional before qualifying, most teams chose to preserve tires and components in the first minutes, leaving the track practically empty. The weather conditions were more favorable than on Friday, with an ambient temperature of 19°C and track temperature at 34°C, as well as a low threat of rain during the session.
When the cars began to set times, Racing Bulls showed speed again. Hadjar was the first to take the provisional lead before Liam Lawson improved the time. Lindblad also appeared among the top positions, confirming that the team maintained the competitiveness shown on Friday.
Ferrari responded quickly. Hamilton took the lead with 1m47.436s and shortly after lowered it to 1m46.789s, putting more than six tenths ahead of the rest of the field at that moment. Piastri appeared among the leaders, while Norris set a good time even using medium tires, on a different program from his teammate.
Gabriel Bortoleto also started the activity well. On his first flying lap, the Brazilian recorded 1m48.492s to temporarily occupy seventh place, again ahead of Nico Hülkenberg by about two tenths. As other drivers entered the track, the Brazilian naturally lost positions but remained close to the top 10.
The session gained a tense moment when Hadjar suffered a stall right after leaving the pits. The Racing Bulls driver complained over the radio of total power loss and stopped at the pit lane exit, causing a yellow flag. Marshals had to remove the car, which still had difficulties turning off the engine and engaging neutral. Despite the setback, the team managed to solve the problem and put the Frenchman back on track later.
Mercedes, which took longer to start its program, showed all its strength when it finally joined the fight. First Verstappen took second place behind Hamilton, while Russell and Leclerc gradually improved. Then came the lap that defined the session: Antonelli clocked 1m45.990s, was the fastest in all three sectors, and opened almost eight tenths of a second advantage over Hamilton, an impressive difference considering the rest of the field was using the same tire compound.
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Next, teams began running long stints on used soft tires to evaluate the cars’ behavior with a full fuel tank. At Audi, Bortoleto discussed over the radio the need to increase the front wing load slightly to improve the car’s balance in race pace. Meanwhile, race control confirmed that Fernando Alonso had also exceeded the power unit component limit and will start from the back of the grid alongside Norris and Hadjar.
The final 15 minutes were dedicated to definitive qualifying simulations. Norris jumped to second place, Verstappen improved to third, Russell advanced to fourth, Hamilton recovered ground, Piastri entered the top 10, and Hülkenberg put Audi among the leaders with an excellent lap.
Shortly after, Gabriel Bortoleto responded. Using new soft tires, the Brazilian recorded 1m47.049s, enough to rise to ninth place, just over a tenth behind Hülkenberg. The result placed both Audi cars in the top 10 for the first time this weekend and represented an important step forward compared to the performance shown in FP2, as well as confirming the good pace shown by the Brazilian since Friday at Spa.
The final stretch still saw another improvement from Leclerc, who moved up to sixth place, but the session ended dramatically for Ferrari. With only a few seconds left before the chequered flag, Hamilton went off exactly in the same section where Pierre Gasly had crashed on Friday. The Briton put a wheel on the gravel, lost control, jumped over a bump, hit the tire barrier violently, and still traveled a few meters before stopping. The impact destroyed the rear wing and the right rear suspension of the Ferrari, causing double yellow flags and prematurely ending any possibility of new fast laps.
With the chequered flag, Antonelli confirmed the lead in FP3 and reinforced Mercedes’ favoritism for qualifying. Norris and Verstappen completed the top three, followed by Russell, Hamilton, Leclerc, Piastri, Hülkenberg, Bortoleto, and Hadjar. Audi left one of the best impressions of the session by placing both its drivers in the top 10, while Ferrari ended preparations for the grid decision with great concern after Hamilton’s heavy crash.
Qualifying, which will determine the starting grid for the Belgian GP, takes place later this Saturday at 11 a.m. Brasília time. Follow LIVE in REAL TIME on F1Mania.net.
Check the FP3 results valid for the 2026 Belgian GP:
1) Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 1’45.990
2) Lando Norris (McLaren/Mercedes) 1’46.129
3) Max Verstappen (Red Bull/Red Bull Ford) 1’46.138
4) George Russell (Mercedes) 1’46.357
5) Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) 1’46.382
6) Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 1’46.750
7) Oscar Piastri (McLaren/Mercedes) 1’46.785
8) Nico Hülkenberg (Audi) 1’46.924
9) G.Bortoleto (Audi) 1’47.049
10) Isack Hadjar (Red Bull/Red Bull Ford) 1’47.096
11) Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls/Red Bull Ford) 1’47.176
12) Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls/Red Bull Ford) 1’47.690
13) Franco Colapinto (Alpine/Mercedes) 1’47.904
14) Oliver Bearman (Haas/Ferrari) 1’47.920
15) Pierre Gasly (Alpine/Mercedes) 1’47.949
16) Alexander Albon (Williams/Mercedes) 1’47.990
17) Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac/Ferrari) 1’48.644
18) Carlos Sainz (Williams/Mercedes) 1’48.692
19) Esteban Ocon (Haas/Ferrari) 1’48.730
20) Sergio Pérez (Cadillac/Ferrari) 1’48.990
21) Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin/Honda) 1’50.155
22) Lance Stroll (Aston Martin/Honda) 1’50.631
Read more Belgian GP 2026: live coverage of F1 Free Practice 3 at Spa-Francorchamps
