George Russell continued his impressive form by setting the fastest time in the third practice session (FP3) for the 2026 Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The Mercedes driver has been untouchable so far in Baku, laying down a marker ahead of tonight's qualifying.
Russell had already dominated both practice sessions on Thursday, and he showed no signs of slowing down. His teammate, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who missed valuable track time due to a hydraulic issue in FP1, managed to finish second in FP2 and is slowly closing the gap.
However, the spotlight was on Lando Norris, who expressed deep frustration with his upgraded McLaren. "It's like a knife in the heart," he said after finishing sixth in FP2, nearly 1.5 seconds adrift of Russell's best time.
Meanwhile, Max Verstappen of Red Bull ended the day third, but acknowledged that his team needs to find more pace to challenge Mercedes in qualifying.
Ferrari showed promise with Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz in fourth and fifth, suggesting they could be in the mix for pole position.
On the other side of the garage, Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad crashed at the castle section in FP2, bringing out a brief red flag. The Briton, who had a similar incident in Madrid, will need to regroup for qualifying.
Aston Martin faces a tough challenge as both Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll will serve a combined 45-place grid penalty due to power unit changes. They were already at the back in FP2 and will likely struggle to escape Q1.
Qualifying will determine who starts on pole. With Russell's dominance, can Mercedes lock out the front row? Or will Verstappen and Ferrari spring a surprise? The battle for pole is set to be intense.
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