Kimi Antonelli set the fastest time in FP3. The Mercedes driver finished ahead of the Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc, while Lewis Hamilton took third place in this final Free Practice session ahead of George Russell.

Kimi Antonelli is finally proving himself in Monaco ! The championship leader set the fastest time in the third and final free practice session. While Scuderia Ferrari remains at the front of the grid, McLaren and Red Bull appear to be struggling on the princely circuit. The end of the session was, however, disrupted by Oliver Bearman spinning off the track at the Massenet corner.

Mercedes is no longer keeping its cards hidden

While Scuderia Ferrari started this final Free Practice session at the front of the grid, the Silver Arrows quickly showed their strengths. Kimi Antonelli became the first driver of the weekend to break the 1’13″000 mark. Midway through the session, the German team even placed both of its cars at the top of the timesheet, watched by thousands of spectators packed into the grandstands.

Meanwhile, George Russell, the championship leader’s teammate, struggled more. At the end of the session, the Briton was 0″763 seconds behind the Italian, a significant gap that he would have to close during qualifying.

A compact peloton

In the middle of the field, the competition is heating up. While Audi appears to hold a slight edge after these Free Practice sessions, Alpine, Williams, and Haas have proven they’re teams to be reckoned with. This is a reassuring trend for the American team, which kept pace despite the valuable track time lost by Oliver Bearman following his mistake 15 minutes before the checkered flag.

Now it’s time for the decisive qualifying session on the streets of the Principality. The battle promises to be fierce right down to the final timed lap : see you at 4 pm.

See the complete standings