George Russell shocked Crimson Bull, Ferrari and McLaren to high ultimate follow; world champion Max Verstappen solely sixth after tinkering with setup; watch Abu Dhabi GP qualifying stay on Sky Sports activities F1 at 2pm on Saturday
Final Up to date: 25/11/23 12:18pm
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World champion Max Verstappen appeared to battle throughout third follow forward of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
World champion Max Verstappen appeared to battle throughout third follow forward of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
George Russell topped ultimate follow on the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix as world champion Max Verstappen struggled forward of the ultimate qualifying session of the 2023 season.
Russell, who had topped first follow on Friday, continued his sturdy begin to the weekend for Mercedes by setting a 1:24.418 to outpace Lando Norris by nearly a tenth of a second, together with his McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri third.
Alex Albon was fourth for Williams, surprisingly forward of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Crimson Bull’s Verstappen in fifth and sixth, respectively.
Whereas the outcomes of the afternoon session have to be handled with warning as a result of reality qualifying – and the race – happen in considerably totally different night-time situations underneath the lights, Russell’s tempo suggests the Brit may very well be within the combine for pole.
Lewis Hamilton was solely twelfth and the perfect a part of a second off the tempo of his team-mate Russell, whereas Ferrari’s Sainz was final, maybe highlighting the totally different setups and programmes being run by drivers.
George Russell topped his second follow session of the weekend
The session took on extra significance after operating was restricted on Friday as 10 rookies featured in first follow earlier than the returning drivers misplaced half of the second session on account of two pink flag delays.
Russell went quickest early within the session however the assumption was that when all of the automobiles switched to tender tyres within the closing levels, the likes of Verstappen and Leclerc would rise to the highest.
Whereas they did enhance, it was nowhere close to sufficient to return near Russell, who discovered extra tempo himself together with his ultimate run.
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Sky F1’s Anthony Davidson takes a have a look at the Yas Marina Circuit forward of this weekend’s ultimate race of the season on the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Sky F1’s Anthony Davidson takes a have a look at the Yas Marina Circuit forward of this weekend’s ultimate race of the season on the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Norris, who expressed confidence in McLaren’s potential after Friday’s restricted operating, appeared set to dislodge Russell earlier than an enormous slide within the ultimate nook price him time.
Having been one of many 10 drivers to overlook out on first follow on Friday, Verstappen gave up extra monitor time as he performed round with the setup of his entrance suspension all through the session.
The Dutchman, who’s searching for to finish his marketing campaign with a record-extending nineteenth win of the season, clearly remained sad together with his setup as he complained of “bottoming” and “leaping” on his ultimate run as he completed greater than 0.7s again from Russell
Leclerc, who has taken three poles within the final 4 races, additionally appeared shocked to be to date off of the Mercedes driver, regardless of the potential for variance within the totally different situations.
Abu Dhabi GP Follow Three Timesheet
Driver Crew Time 1. George Russell Mercedes 1:24.418 2. Lando Norris McLaren +0.095 3. Oscar Piastri McLaren +0.392 4. Alex Albon Williams +0.511 5. Charles Leclerc Ferrari +0.681 6. Max Verstappen Crimson Bull +0.735 7. Esteban Ocon Alpine +0.776 8. Logan Sargeant Williams +0.787 9. Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri +0.804 10. Zhou Guanyu Alfa Romeo +0.840 11. Sergio Perez Crimson Bull +0.841 12. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes +0.874 13. Pierre Gasly Alpine +0.885 14. Fernando Alonso Aston Martin +0.925 15. Lance Stroll Aston Martin +0.987 16. Valtteri Bottas Alfa Romeo +1.002 17. Nico Hulkenberg Haas +1.166 18. Daniel Ricciardo AlphaTauri +1.179 19. Kevin Magnussen Haas +1.234 20. Carlos Sainz Ferrari +1.295 Sky Sports activities F1’s stay Abu Dhabi GP schedule
Saturday November 25
1.15pm: Abu Dhabi GP Qualifying build-up2pm: Abu Dhabi GP Qualifying4pm: Ted’s Qualifying Pocket book
Sunday November 26
9.10am: F2 Characteristic Race11.30pm: Grand Prix Sunday Abu Dhabi GP build-up1pm: The ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX3pm: Chequered Flag: Abu Dhabi GP reaction4pm: Ted’s Pocket book
After the thrills of Las Vegas, Components 1 heads to Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina Circuit for the 2023 season finale and one other gorgeous spectacle underneath the lights. Watch the Abu Dhabi weekend stay on Sky Sports activities F1, with lights out on Sunday at 1pm. Stream F1 on Sky Sports activities with NOW