Silverstone GP3: Luca Ghiotto leads practice for Trident
Trident driver Luca Ghiotto topped free practice for the third round of the GP3 Series at Silverstone
The championship-leading Italian set the pace halfway through the session and continued to improve throughout, opening up a 0.764-second gap to Koiranen's Jimmy Eriksson in second.
Arden driver Emil Bernstorff, who set the pace in the opening stages, eventually replaced Eriksson in second place.
Fellow Brit Matt Parry enjoyed a consistent session to finish fourth in another Koiranen car, ahead of early pacesetter Marvin Kirchhofer and his ART Grand Prix team-mate Esteban Ocon.
Alex Palou was able to climb the order in the closing stages to finish seventh, followed by Arthur Janosz.
Koiranen;s third driver Adderley Fong took ninth ahead of Matheo Tuscher who consistently ran in the top 10.
Several drivers struggled with grip throughout the session and had some off-track excursions.
Nissan protege Jann Mardenborough beached his car in the gravel trap at Luffield in the opening stages, which briefly brought out the red flag.
The Brit got going again soon after and the session was quickly resumed.
Status Grand Prix drivers Sandy Stuvik and Alex Fontana also had eventful sessions.
Stuvik lost the back end and spun at Copse, his car then briefly catching fire, while Fontana spun on the entry to Stowe.
PRACTICE TIMES:
| Pos | Driver | Team | Time | Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Luca Ghiotto | Trident | 1m48.555s | - | 20 |
| 2 | Emil Bernstorff | Arden International | 1m49.255s | 0.700s | 19 |
| 3 | Jimmy Eriksson | Koiranen GP | 1m49.319s | 0.764s | 20 |
| 4 | Matt Parry | Koiranen GP | 1m49.462s | 0.907s | 17 |
| 5 | Marvin Kirchhofer | ART Grand Prix | 1m49.542s | 0.987s | 20 |
| 6 | Esteban Ocon | ART Grand Prix | 1m49.628s | 1.073s | 19 |
| 7 | Alex Palou | Campos Racing | 1m49.689s | 1.134s | 17 |
| 8 | Artur Janosz | Trident | 1m49.709s | 1.154s | 18 |
| 9 | Adderly Fong | Koiranen GP | 1m49.739s | 1.184s | 15 |
| 10 | Matheo Tuscher | Jenzer Motorsport | 1m49.826s | 1.271s | 19 |
| 11 | Pal Varhaug | Jenzer Motorsport | 1m49.835s | 1.280s | 19 |
| 12 | Alex Fontana | Status Grand Prix | 1m49.954s | 1.399s | 20 |
| 13 | Oscar Tunjo | Trident | 1m49.997s | 1.442s | 18 |
| 14 | Seb Morris | Status Grand Prix | 1m50.018s | 1.463s | 18 |
| 15 | Kevin Ceccon | Arden International | 1m50.027s | 1.472s | 18 |
| 16 | Antonio Fuoco | Carlin | 1m50.035s | 1.480s | 18 |
| 17 | Jann Mardenborough | Carlin | 1m50.130s | 1.575s | 18 |
| 18 | Ralph Boschung | Jenzer Motorsport | 1m50.203s | 1.648s | 18 |
| 19 | Zaid Ashkanani | Campos Racing | 1m50.319s | 1.764s | 18 |
| 20 | Mitch Gilbert | Carlin | 1m50.400s | 1.845s | 20 |
| 21 | Sandy Stuvik | Status Grand Prix | 1m50.456s | 1.901s | 16 |
| 22 | Alfonso Celis | ART Grand Prix | 1m50.776s | 2.221s | 19 |
| 23 | Christopher Hoher | Campos Racing | 1m51.204s | 2.649s | 21 |
| 24 | Alex Bosak | Arden International | 1m51.346s | 2.791s | 20 |
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