F1 Tuscan GP Live Updates - final practice and qualifying
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With just 0.083s splitting the top three that teases the prospect of an incredibly close qualifying, unless Mercedes turns it up, as has been the trend this year. But how teams stick to the same engine mode for qualifying and the race within all of that will be fascinating.
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So Bottas takes a clean sweep of practice top spots at Mugello, but can he make it count? One way to answer that will arrive in a littler under three hours come the end of qualifying when pole position will be vital at this tight and twisty track.
Albon takes the flag and moves up to eighth place with his final lap but he had a minor moment at Turn 12 with a kick-up of dirt on the corner exit. Understeery.
Checkered flag
That's the end of practice for the Tuscan GP. Bottas tops FP3 from Verstappen and Hamilton.
Into the final minute of FP3 and the drivers are already winding down on their session programmes with plenty of practice starts being completed.
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Verstappen splits the Mercedes pair at the top to take second place with a 1m16.547s. The Dutch driver is definitely in the hunt this weekend.
The last of the soft tyre runs are being logged with Ocon climbing to tenth place ahead of McLaren's Sainz by 0.022s which promises another extremely tight Q2 session later on.
Yellow flag
Gasly has a brief off-track moment between Turns 10 and 11 and takes to the gravel and grass run-off. He asked a little bit too much of his AlphaTauri's grip but gets away with it.
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Stroll turns the dials up in his Racing Point to go third fastest with a 1m17.112s.
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The same can also be said for Italian GP winner Gasly as he goes P4 for AlphaTauri with a 1m17.226s just over one-tenth off of Verstappen.
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Raikkonen is also putting in a good showing for Alfa Romeo as he improves to go sixth place with a 1m17.843s.
Behind the top three Leclerc has moved up to fourth for Ferrari, still almost a full second off the pace of the Mercedes, while his team-mate Vettel takes P7. Encouraging improvements for the team celebrating its 1000th grand prix this weekend.
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Hamilton responds with a 1m16.613s to go 0.083s off Bottas.
Bottas produced a storming first and second sector on that lap but it looked like the tyres cried enough around the final sector as he failed to improve on his personal best over that split.
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Bottas returns to the top of the times with a 1m16.530s on fresh soft tyres.
Albon, who is alone on track at the moment, sticks to the mediums for his second run of the session. He is currently P6 and has over a second find to his team-mate.
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Tyre watch: Aside from the Mercs, Alfa Romeos and Latifi, the rest of the F1 field has stuck to the mediums so far. So anticipate some soft tyre and qualifying-style runs up next.
Russell goes for a chat with the Williams pitwall crew while his car is attended to. With 25 minutes of the session to go it could be a costly one come qualifying.
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Stopwatch
Verstappen, on a second push lap on the mediums, goes fastest with a 1m17.116s.
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Williams is reporting Russell is stuck in the garage with brake problems which would explain why he has only completed a single lap in the session.
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And it is a really good lap by Verstappen as he posts a 1m17.298s to take P2 and just 0.059s off Bottas who set his time on the softs.
Still waiting for timed laps from Russell and Verstappen, but here comes the Red Bull driver on the mediums winding up for a quick one.
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Albon, on the mediums, completes his lap and goes P5 with a 1m18.275s.
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"There's some pretty aggressive misfires there," Albon tells his Red Bull team.
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Hamilton lowers the benchmark with a 1m17.415s, going faster than Bottas by just 0.022s.
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Leclerc slots into P2 with a 1m18.333s but is eight-tenths of a second off Bottas.
Perhaps this session should be limited to 40 minutes because as soon as the clock ticks past that point half of the F1 field leaves the pits. The good news is plenty of action and lap times coming up.
Stopwatch
Raikkonen, running wide at the final corner on his first timed lap on the softs, posts a 1m18.469s to put him over one second off the early time by Bottas.
Giovinazzi joins his team-mate on track to give Alfa Romeo all of the TV time. The team's sponsors will be pleased.
Three cheers for Raikkonen! The Finn saves the session by heading out for his first run of the day. His fans in the socially distanced grandstands will be going wild - or at least woken up by the sound of his Alfa Romeo.
The drivers are emerging from the back of their garages and getting strapped into the cars, so track action should be moments away. We promise.
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You'd think the drivers wouldn't be able to resist themselves with an empty Mugello track on a bright and sunny day, but they are showing great restraint. Partly to keep tabs on their tyre allocations plus engine mileage and partly to save the strength in their necks.
Just one timed lap for Bottas as he pits and leaves the track empty, as it tends to be for the opening stages of FP3.
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Stopwatch
Using the soft tyres Bottas provides the first timed lap of the session with a 1m17.437s. He goes top, obviously.
By: Jake Boxall-Legge
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