The final practice session of the F1 2025 Spanish GP saw Oscar Paistri back on top, followed by Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc.
What happened this Spanish GP weekend so far?
McLaren continued their strong form in Barcelona, with Lando Norris topping FP1 and Oscar Piastri leading FP2. Norris edged out Verstappen and Hamilton in the opening session, as teams tested revised front wings under new aerodynamic regulations. Tyre temperature management proved crucial, especially around the demanding final sector.
In FP2, Piastri set the benchmark with a 1:12.760, ahead of Russell and Verstappen, as McLaren again showed pace over both short and long runs. While Ferrari and Mercedes showed glimpses of competitiveness, Hamilton struggled with grip. Most F1 teams focused on race simulations in the second half, as the front-running order began to take shape.
The clock ticked down
The session began quietly, with only a handful of drivers taking to the track early on. Franco Colapinto emerged first in his Alpine, looking to gain more experience, followed by the Aston Martins, likely scrubbing tyres as part of their usual routine. Bortoleto also headed out on mediums, like Colapinto.
Activity in the pit lane remained minimal during the early stages, with most drivers waiting for others to lay down rubber. Lando Norris was seen preparing to head out, having taken pole at this circuit last year before losing out to Verstappen on race day.
Esteban Ocon returned to the track on soft tyres after sitting out FP1 for Ryo Hirakawa, putting him slightly behind in preparation. Haas continued to struggle, with both drivers finishing near the bottom in FP2 as they worked to understand their recent upgrades introduced at Imola. Team principal Ayao Komatsu remained hopeful for points, depending on overnight adjustments.
While Ocon opted for softs, most drivers began on medium compounds—possibly hinting at a two-stop strategy for the F1 Spanish GP in Barcelona. Bearman and Sainz also ran softs, with Sainz seeking a turnaround after a difficult Friday for Williams, who appeared off the pace.
Track temperatures rose to 45°C, making grip more difficult. Yuki Tsunoda reported sliding, though still managed to briefly go fastest with a 1:14.851, just ahead of Ocon. As the session progressed, pace intensified. Leclerc moved to the top on softs before being edged out by Hamilton on mediums, and then by Russell, who set the quickest time with a 1:13.369 on softs.
Halfway point at the final F1 Practice Session in Barcelona
At the halfway mark of the final practice at the F1 Spanish GP, George Russell led the timesheets on soft tyres with a 1:13.396—almost half a second ahead of Norris on mediums, followed by Leclerc and Hamilton. Verstappen, also on mediums, sat sixth behind Sainz.
Sainz and Albon, both on softs, appeared more competitive than on Friday, hinting at overnight improvements. Although Williams had historically struggled at this circuit, their 2025 car showed progress despite a poor showing in earlier sessions.
Antonelli was the last to join the action but made an immediate impact, going second quickest on his first flying lap with soft tyres. Despite this, he remained over four tenths behind Russell, showing there was still work ahead for the young driver.
Liam Lawson had a brief off-track moment after losing rear grip and dipping a wheel into the gravel, highlighting the circuit’s unforgiving nature.
The quali laps were coming
As the session reached its latter stages, most drivers returned to the pits in preparation for runs on fresh soft tyres. Only a few remained on track—Russell, Sainz, Lawson, and Gasly—while track temperatures climbed to 47°C, adding to the already demanding conditions.
Antonelli attempted another flying lap on lightly used tyres, but with the C3 compound offering limited grip on second runs, improvements were rare.
Verstappen then emerged on new softs and set a clean lap to go quickest with a 1:13.375, narrowly edging out Russell’s earlier time. Norris, also back out, initially ran wide on older tyres and aborted his effort. Even on fresh rubber, he could not match teammate Piastri, who looked in strong form once again.
Piastri delivered an impressive lap of 1:12.387 to take provisional P1, putting half a second between himself and Norris. Leclerc moved up to third, though he remained seven tenths off the leading pace, as significant gaps began to emerge at the top of the timesheets.
Final laps
As the session progressed, the gap to McLaren continued to grow. Hamilton could only manage eighth, despite a clean lap, ending up over 1.1 seconds adrift of Piastri. Leclerc remained third but was still more than seven tenths behind, leaving Ferrari with clear performance concerns heading into qualifying.
Norris improved on his second attempt but still needed to find half a second to challenge his teammate.
Behind the McLarens, the field was far tighter. Leclerc, Russell, and Verstappen were separated by mere hundredths, with Hadjar just 0.007s behind the Red Bull. Racing Bulls remained competitive, with Lawson in the top ten.
Final results
- Piastri
- Norris
- Leclerc
- Russell
- Verstappen
- Hadjar
- Antonelli
- Alonso
- Hamilton
- Lawson
- Bortoleto
- Hülkenberg
- Sainz
- Tsunoda
- Stroll
- Gasly
- Colapinto
- Ocon
- Albon
- Bearman
