George Russell set the pace in the third and final practice session for the 2026 FIA Formula 1 Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, the Mercedes driver posting a late lap of 1:15.679 to finish two tenths clear of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri.

Charles Leclerc took third for Ferrari, just 0.029s behind Piastri, with Lando Norris fourth in the second McLaren after an FP3 session that built slowly before ending with a series of rapid-fire qualifying simulations.

In hot conditions many teams elected to stay in the garages in the opening phase, leaving the Cadillacs of Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Pérez, along with Nico Hülkenberg’s Audi, to complete the early running.

The first representative laps arrived after the 20-minute mark, with Norris moving to the top on soft tyres with a 1:16.609. Leclerc soon closed to within 0.076s of the McLaren, while Mercedes began to show stronger pace as the session approached halfway.

Russell then lowered the benchmark to 1:16.258, putting himself 0.242s ahead of team-mate Kimi Antonelli, who had briefly looked set for a stronger lap before losing time in the final sector. The session was then interrupted when Bottas spun into the gravel at Turn 10, the Cadillac driver reporting a brake pedal issue over team radio. The incident brought out the red flags.

Running resumed with 20 minutes remaining, but it was not until the final 10 minutes that the majority of the field returned for push laps. Russell was first to improve significantly, finding more than half a second to establish the final benchmark.

Piastri responded with 1:15.893 to take second, while Leclerc’s 1:15.922 edged him ahead of Norris by just 0.003s. Lewis Hamilton completed the top five for Ferrari, 0.702s off Russell’s time, with Max Verstappen sixth for Red Bull.

Antonelli ended the session seventh after his late runs were compromised by traffic and a moment at Turn 10. Isack Hadjar was eighth, ahead of Hülkenberg and Arvid Lindblad, who completed the top 10.

2026 FIA Formula 1 Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix – Free Practice 3
1 George Russell Mercedes 1:15.679 11 221.530
2 Oscar Piastri McLaren/Mercedes 1:15.893 0.214 12 220.905
3 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:15.922 0.243 17 220.821
4 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 1:15.925 0.246 15 220.812
5 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari 1:16.381 0.702 16 219.494
6 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Red Bull Ford 1:16.434 0.755 12 219.342
7 Kimi Antonelli Mercedes 1:16.500 0.821 12 219.152
8 Isack Hadjar Red Bull/Red Bull Ford 1:16.684 1.005 15 218.627
9 Nico Hülkenberg Audi 1:16.961 1.282 22 217.840
10 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls/Red Bull Ford 1:17.020 1.341 16 217.673
11 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi 1:17.027 1.348 13 217.653
12 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls/Red Bull Ford 1:17.324 1.645 15 216.817
13 Pierre Gasly Alpine/Mercedes 1:17.583 1.904 15 216.093
14 Franco Colapinto Alpine/Mercedes 1:17.625 1.946 14 215.976
15 Carlos Sainz Williams/Mercedes 1:17.730 2.051 19 215.685
16 Esteban Ocon Haas/Ferrari 1:18.040 2.361 15 214.828
17 Oliver Bearman Haas/Ferrari 1:18.391 2.712 13 213.866
18 Alexander Albon Williams/Mercedes 1:18.412 2.733 15 213.809
19 Sergio Pérez Cadillac/Ferrari 1:18.691 3.012 21 213.051
20 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin/Honda 1:19.496 3.817 18 210.893
21 Valtteri Bottas Cadillac/Ferrari 1:19.962 4.283 14 209.664
22 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Honda 1:20.103 4.424 17 209.295