FP3 Report | Verstappen leads the way in eventful final practice at COTA

Max Verstappen topped the times in the final practice session of the United States Grand Prix weekend, leading the two Ferraris behind. Although the gap looks ominous, the times don't tell the full picture.

It seemed like the top spot on the timing chart was occupied by every driver at some point. Although Verstappen finished the session on top by three-tenths, it was scarily close between the top-three teams all throughout the session! Leclerc followed behind in second, with Sainz in third. Don't let the gap between Verstappen and Leclerc fool you, the Ferraris, and even the Mercedes, all have the opportunity for pole position later today.

Talking to Andreas Seidl, Jenson Button exclaimed that the soft tyres only last one lap, to which Seidl nodded in agreement. Even with previous races being predominantly two-stop strategies, the tyres have never looked this volatile! This will surely make for an interesting race.

At the Team Principal's press conference earlier today it was announced by Williams' Jost Capito that American racer Logan Sargeant will join the team in 2023 should he be able to secure the neccessary Super Licence points. The American is currently third in the Formula 2 standings with one weekend to go. Sargeant will need to finish the season in at least sixth in the standings to secure his Super Licence.

Candidly nicknamed the 'last of the late-brakers', Daniel Ricciardo saw no joy from his brakes in FP3 as an issue saw him sit out of the session for a time after only a few laps completed. After sitting out FP1 to make way for Alex Palou, the Aussie will need to pull out all the stops to impress in Qualifying.

Ricciardo wasn't the only driver with issues in the session, as early into the running Mick Schumacher was found going slow by the start/finish straight. A hydraulics issue saw him trundle around the lap and back into the pits, only coming back out late into the session.

Another driver who struggled was Alfa Romeo's Zhou Guanyu, the Chinese driver stranded in the garage with car issues preventing him from setting any meaningful laps.