MX23RW : Sunday, September 29 10:17:57| >> :600:148408:148408:

Charles Leclerc fastest in final practice for Austrian Grand Prix

Charles Leclerc fastest in final practice for Austrian Grand Prix
© Reuters
The young Monegasque edged out Lewis Hamilton by just 0.143 seconds.

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc finished fastest in the final practice session for the Austrian Grand Prix.

The young Monegasque edged out Lewis Hamilton by just 0.143 seconds, with Valtteri Bottas third in the sister Mercedes.

Sebastian Vettel ended the final running before the battle for pole position later on Saturday in fourth, the top four covered by 0.263 sec.

Hamilton dominated last weekend in France to claim his sixth victory from the opening eight rounds. He will head into Sunday's race with a 36-point lead over Bottas.

But the power-heavy Red Bull Ring here in the Styrian Mountains appears to be more suitable to Ferrari's straight-line speed advantage.

Leclerc finished fastest in practice on Friday afternoon, and led the way again this morning, boosting his chances of a second career pole.

Bottas and Max Verstappen both crashed out of second practice, with the former taken to the on-track medical centre following his 130mph shunt.

But the Finn was back in his car for the final session, while Verstappen also returned to action, finishing within half-a-second of Leclerc's best effort.

Elsewhere, British teenager Lando Norris was an impressive sixth ahead of Red Bull driver Pierre Gasly.

George Russell held the edge over Robert Kubica, finishing eight tenths clear of his Williams team-mate in 19th.

ga('create', 'UA-72310761-1', 'auto', {'name': 'pacontentapi'});
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'referrer', location.origin);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension1', 'By Philip Duncan, PA F1 Correspondent, Spielberg');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension2', '60c97828-1125-4705-a0c3-0008e499fac4');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension3', 'paservice:sport,paservice:sport:uk,paservice:sport:world');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension6', 'story');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension7', 'composite');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension8', null);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension9', 'sport:auto,sport:f1,sport:other');
ga('pacontentapi.send', 'pageview', { 'location': location.href, 'page': (location.pathname + location.search + location.hash), 'title': 'Leclerc fastest in final practice'});

ID:363295: cacheID:363295:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:5741:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Toto Wolff pictured in April 2019
Read Next:
Wolff says he is happy as Mercedes boss
>
Read more about Charles Leclerc Formula 1
rhs 2.0


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!