2026 Japanese GP FP3: Antonelli lays down a statement lap

Kimi Antonelli delivered a commanding performance in final practice at Suzuka, leading a dominant Mercedes one-two ahead of George Russell as the team tightened its grip on the Japanese Grand Prix weekend. In a session that offered the clearest indication yet of outright pace, Antonelli’s benchmark of 1m 29.362s left him over a quarter of a second clear of his team-mate—and a striking eight tenths ahead of the rest of the field, headed by Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.

With just one hour of running remaining before qualifying, FP3 represented the final opportunity for teams to fine-tune setups and extract performance from their packages on one of Formula 1’s most demanding circuits. However, the session began in a relatively subdued fashion, with much of the field delaying their runs. It was Lewis Hamilton who initially set the benchmark on soft tyres, before Charles Leclerc edged ahead with a 1m 31.018s as Ferrari once again showed early pace.

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One of the key storylines, however, was unfolding away from the timesheets. Reigning World Champion Lando Norris endured another disrupted session, with McLaren battling an ERS issue that kept him in the garage until just 25 minutes remained—severely limiting his preparation ahead of qualifying.

2026 Japanese Grand Prix FP3 Results

2026 Japanese Grand Prix FP3, 28 March 2026

As the session approached the 20-minute mark, Antonelli began to assert control. The Italian became the first driver to break into the 1m 30s, posting a 1m 30.418s to go six tenths clear of Leclerc, before the Ferrari driver responded to reduce the gap to just over a tenth. George Russell soon joined the fight, slotting into third just a tenth behind, though traffic through 130R proved problematic, with both Nico Hulkenberg and Valtteri Bottas voicing frustrations over compromised laps.

The competitive order continued to evolve approaching the halfway stage. Leclerc briefly reclaimed top spot with a 1m 30.229s, while both Mercedes drivers struggled to match his final sector performance. That balance shifted decisively soon after, as Antonelli became the first driver all weekend to dip below the 1m 30s barrier with a 1m 29.929s lap. Russell responded immediately, edging ahead by just 0.011s, setting up a direct intra-team battle at the front.

That duel peaked in the closing stages. After finally getting out on track, Norris slotted into P11 on his first representative run, but attention quickly returned to the Mercedes pair. Russell lowered the benchmark to a 1m 29.616s, only for Antonelli to deliver the defining lap of the session moments later—a 1m 29.362s that would remain unbeaten to the chequered flag.

Behind them, Leclerc held onto third but was left more than eight tenths adrift, underlining the current performance gap to Mercedes. Oscar Piastri followed in fourth for McLaren, with Hamilton and Norris completing the top six—the latter finishing 1.2 seconds off the ultimate pace after his disrupted session.

Nico Hulkenberg led Audi’s charge in seventh, ahead of Max Verstappen, who continued to struggle to match the front-runners despite a clean session aside from a late wide moment. Gabriel Bortoleto and Pierre Gasly completed the top ten.

Further down the order, Isack Hadjar led the Racing Bulls contingent ahead of Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad, while Esteban Ocon finished ahead of Haas team-mate Oliver Bearman, the latter surviving a major scare after spinning on exit at Spoon Curve without making contact.

Alex Albon placed 16th, just ahead of Carlos Sainz, with Franco Colapinto and Bottas following. Sergio Perez endured another difficult session, ending P20 after a trip through the gravel at the final chicane, while the Aston Martin duo of Lance Stroll and Alonso completed the order, both more than four seconds off the pace.