Vettel concludes Spanish practice on top

Sebastian Vettel went fastest in FP3, confirming Red Bull’s excellent pace on the Catalunya circuit.

The German led his team-mate Mark Webber by 0.7s. Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button were third and fourth fastest for McLaren-Mercedes.

None of the drivers was in a rush to lap around a green track at the start of the session – thanks to heavy overnight rain – and most of them waited fifteen minutes before leaving the pits and resuming their preparations for the afternoon qualification.

They all did an installation lap – apart from Rosberg and Schumacher – at the start of the session and then retreated into their garages. Nico Hulkenberg was the first to begin his first serious running of the day, quickly followed by both Sauber cars and Renault’s Petrov.

The session was red-flagged at 11.20 local time, following Petrov’s heavy crash. The Russian lost his Renault under braking at Turn 4 and hit the tyre wall. He walked unhurt but his car took a battering with front and rear damage.

Kamui Kobayashi went off at the same corner just a few seconds later. He didn’t damage his car but remained stuck in the gravel trap. It is suspected both drivers got caught out by a wet kerbing.

The session restarted at 11.28 local time with the front runners finally deciding to leave the pits. Lewis Hamilton immediately put his McLaren on top while Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber took second and third.

Webber improved his mark in the following lap and bettered Hamilton’s time by 0.171s to edge on top. With fifteen minutes left, the Australian was leading his team-mate Vettel by 0.025s with Hamilton and Button fourth and fifth.

The last dash saw both Red Bull drivers trying to up the pace. Vettel managed to find a clear lap to come on top, as Webber struggled with traffic and opted to return to the pits. The German eventually went fastest with a 1’20’’528 best lap with Webber holding on to 2nd spot.

Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button were third and fourth fastest for McLaren while Michael Schumacher took his Mercedes up to fifth spot, albeit one second down on Vettel. He was followed by Massa, Rosberg and Alonso.