Kimi Antonelli sets the tone in Suzuka during the third free practice for the Japanese GP. The young Italian finishes the session fastest, ahead of George Russell and Charles Leclerc. While Mercedes flexes its muscles, things are still not going well at all for Max Verstappen.

Under a bright Japanese sun, the final dress rehearsal for the Japanese Grand Prix is completed at the legendary Suzuka circuit. The session provides plenty of food for thought for the qualifying session scheduled for later today.

It is the Ferraris that are the first to top the timesheets on the soft tire, but that doesn’t last long. Mercedes soon shows its true face and pulls away from the time set by Charles Leclerc. Ultimately, it is Kimi Antonelli who comes out fastest, with George Russell in second place and Leclerc in third. A hopeful morning for the Silver Arrows.

However, the big concerns come from the Red Bull garage. Just like on Friday, Max Verstappen is struggling with a severe lack of downforce and has problems with downshifting. The world champion himself knows that a quick fix is an illusion. “It won’t be easy to solve such problems within one day,” he already said after the second free practice. His performance today confirms that picture.

Lando Norris also spends a long time in the garage. When the McLaren driver finally rolls out after more than half an hour, precious time has been lost. Painful, especially since teammate Oscar Piastri recorded the fastest time in FP2 yesterday.

In between, Oliver Bearman makes hearts skip a beat. The Haas driver loses control of his car but manages to avoid the wall. “Nice save!”, Russell reacts via the team radio. And then there is the story of Audi: Nico Hülkenberg drives to the seventh fastest time and keeps Verstappen behind him, with Gabriel Bortoleto right behind. Whether the Swiss formation can carry this through to qualifying remains to be seen, but the mood there is certainly good.

Qualifying starts today at 07.00 Dutch time.