Verstappen tops final practice in Brazil, Hamilton suffers engine issues
The third practice of the São Paulo Grand Prix weekend saw Max Verstappen go fastest of the 22 drivers. He was followed by Kimi Antonelli and Lando Norris, who won in São Paulo last year.
The soft compound tyre was the favoured choice this session, with almost all of the drivers choosing this type of tyre amid the warm track temperatures, which rose to the high 50's during the hour.
As the session began, it was announced that Formula One will continue to return to Brazil, as the Interlagos circuit has been given a new five-year extension. This means that the São Paulo Grand Prix will be a permanent race on the F1 calendar through to 2035.
Nico Hülkenberg was first out on track, making it his first bit of track time this weekend after being replaced by Freddie Slater in the first practice, and issues with the car in the second session meant he couldn't get out for practice.
On his outlap, the newly crowned Drivers' World Champion, Kimi Antonelli, reported some issues with his steering wheel, as well as problems with the upshift, subsequently pitting for repair.
The track quickly filled up, with Racing Bulls' Arvid Lindblad setting an early benchmark of 1:13:281, before Lando Norris outpaced that time by 0.217 seconds to go fastest.
Charles Leclerc, after struggling for pace on his first timed lap, managed to go ahead of the McLaren with a time of 1:12:723, but Antonelli swooped in after sorting his steering issues and went fastest with a 1:12:497.
Similarly to yesterday's practice sessions, Verstappen reported over his team radio that the steering was heavy, but this time in the opposite direction. Despite these issues, he still managed to finish in the top three.
Liam Lawson made his way into the top four on the board, showing some impressive pace. Meanwhile, Leclerc went fastest again, with a lap time of 1:12:439
During the session, it was confirmed that Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton would be taking a new internal combustion engine (ICE), meaning they will both receive a 10-place-grid penalty for tomorrow's race start.
Along with the Ferrari's, it was confirmed that Sergio Pérez has changed multiple power unit elements, and will start at the back of the grid, alongside Verstappen who also made an engine change.
Despite the new ICE being installed into the Ferrari of Hamilton, the car experienced some engine issues during the session, resulting in the car being wheeled back to the garage. Hamilton wasn't the only one with power unit issues, as Lance Stroll had to hop out of his car due to technical issues and was confirmed to be out for the rest of the session.
Back to the action on track, Antonelli went fastest again with a 1:12:209, whilst Verstappen made his way into the top two as well, recovering from the previous steering issues.
Hamilton got sent out again, but the engine issues continued, with the team coming out of the garage with fire extinguishers to attend to the smoking Ferrari. The question of whether he will be able to take part in qualifying remains, but for now, the car doesn't look like it's in a safe position to compete.
Russell, who will also receive a grid penalty this weekend, went quickest ahead of his teammate after struggling to find pace for most of the session. Piastri moved up behind Russell, before Norris went fastest again. In quick succession, Antonelli went fastest again, and was pipped by Verstappen who had a time of 1:11:622.
Rafael Câmara, in his debut F1 weekend went into the top 10 with a decent effort, 1.259 seconds off pace of the benchmark time. The Brazilian driver has made an early debut at his home race, replacing Esteban Ocon following a fallout he had with Haas last weekend in Mexico.
To complete the session, Verstappen finishes quickest of the grid, with a time of 1:11:622. He was followed by the 2026 Drivers' Champion, Antonelli, and last year's São Paulo Grand Prix winner, Norris. A dry final practice session has set up for what may be a rainy qualifying in Brazil later today as the clouds begin to form above the Interlagos circuit.
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