2021 F1 Belgian Grand Prix, Round 12 – FP3: Verstappen tops a second straight session as Red Bull secures a one-two in the wet

Saturday’s one-hour third practice session for the Belgian Grand Prix, round 12 of the 2021 F1 season, took place at Spa-Francorchamps in the early evening of 28 August, China Standard Time (UTC+8). Max Verstappen topped the timesheets again after leading FP2.

On the rain-soaked track, Verstappen clocked a 1m56.924s lap on intermediate tyres, with team-mate Sergio Pérez following 0.947 seconds behind to give Red Bull-Honda a one-two ahead of qualifying.

Red Bull-Honda fitted both cars with slim, low-downforce rear wings, with the set-up placing even more emphasis on sectors 1 and 3 than the previous day. Even so, their speed through sector 2 remained impressive, and the RB16B set the fastest time in every sector.

Championship rival Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) was third, a second off the pace, with Lando Norris (McLaren) a further 0.5 seconds behind.

The local weather remained unchanged as the Grand Prix entered its second day. Following overnight rain, the session, which offered a pointer to qualifying, began in wet, slippery conditions, with an air temperature of 13.5°C and a track temperature of 15.8°C.

Lando Norris boldly ventured out for one lap on soft tyres in the closing stages, but the track never dried out before the session ended. There was no need to take unnecessary risks before qualifying, and the order on the timesheets was not definitive.

Hamilton, meanwhile, reported at one point that the brakes on the left-hand side were not working. In temperatures this low, getting the brakes up to temperature can sometimes be a challenge.

A slippery track and low temperatures. Soon after the session began, George Russell (Williams) went off the track at the final chicane, while Nikita Mazepin (Haas) ran wide at Turn 8, as cars were repeatedly caught out by the conditions.

Ferrari replaced the chassis of Charles Leclerc’s SF21 after it was damaged in his FP2 crash the previous day. Front-end issues may have been a factor, as Leclerc finished the session 16th and Carlos Sainz 14th.

For AlphaTauri-Honda, Pierre Gasly, who had a slide at Turn 14 late in the session, held on to seventh and continued to stand out in the upper midfield. Yuki Tsunoda took off his helmet having finished 17th.

Four-time Spa winner Kimi Räikkönen, who had brake problems and returned to the garage early, completed just three laps. Alfa Romeo said there had been a technical fault, but the details were unclear. Team-mate Antonio Giovinazzi set the 18th-fastest time.

Meanwhile, during the session F1 made clear that it was abandoning the plan for a 23-race season that it had repeatedly advocated, and revised the calendar for the second half of the season.

Wet or dry? Qualifying for the 2021 F1 Belgian Grand Prix, comprising three parts and lasting one hour in total, will take place at Spa-Francorchamps on the evening of 28 August, China Standard Time (UTC+8).