2026 Sao Paulo GP FP3: Verstappen edges Antonelli as Ferrari engine drama strikes

Max Verstappen snatched the fastest time in final practice at Interlagos, beating newly crowned world champion Kimi Antonelli by just 0.025s as Lewis Hamilton suffered further Ferrari engine problems and heavy rain arrived at the chequered flag.

Max Verstappen delivered a timely boost for Red Bull ahead of qualifying for the 2026 São Paulo Grand Prix, topping the final practice session by the narrowest of margins over Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli.

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The Dutchman produced a 1m 11.622s around the Autódromo José Carlos Pace, edging the newly crowned Formula 1 world champion by just 0.025s, with McLaren’s Lando Norris completing the top three, 0.131s behind.

2026 Sao Paulo Grand FP3 Results

2026 Sao Paulo Grand Prix FP3, 7 November 2026

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	3	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	1:11.622	19
2	12	Kimi Antonelli	Mercedes	+0.025s	21
3	1	Lando Norris	McLaren	+0.131s	22
4	63	George Russell	Mercedes	+0.184s	22
5	16	Charles Leclerc	Ferrari	+0.274s	30
6	81	Oscar Piastri	McLaren	+0.313s	20
7	41	Arvid Lindblad	Racing Bulls	+0.438s	25
8	30	Liam Lawson	Racing Bulls	+0.549s	20
9	6	Isack Hadjar	Red Bull Racing	+0.591s	24
10	5	Gabriel Bortoleto	Audi	+1.022s	24
11	10	Pierre Gasly	Alpine	+1.022s	26
12	44	Lewis Hamilton	Ferrari	+1.211s	7
13	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Audi	+1.243s	27
14	43	Franco Colapinto	Alpine	+1.303s	25
15	51	Rafael Câmara	Haas F1 Team	+1.359s	19
16	87	Oliver Bearman	Haas F1 Team	+1.487s	20
17	23	Alexander Albon	Williams	+1.525s	25
18	14	Fernando Alonso	Aston Martin	+1.549s	23
19	55	Carlos Sainz	Williams	+1.681s	21
20	11	Sergio Perez	Cadillac	+1.951s	32
21	77	Valtteri Bottas	Cadillac	+2.100s	19
22	18	Lance Stroll	Aston Martin	+3.144s	7

George Russell finished fourth for Mercedes, just 0.184s off Verstappen’s benchmark, while Charles Leclerc completed the top five for Ferrari as the leading teams prepared for an unpredictable qualifying session at Interlagos.

Verstappen’s performance came despite the Red Bull driver facing a back-of-the-grid start for Sunday’s race following multiple power unit changes, adding another complication to his weekend at the latest round of the 2026 F1 World Championship.

It was also an eventful final practice session for Ferrari, with both drivers facing significant grid penalties and Lewis Hamilton encountering further engine trouble that ultimately brought his running to a premature end.

Saturday’s final hour began at 11:30 local time, with the threat of rain and thunderstorms hanging over the circuit. Despite the unsettled forecast, most teams initially remained in their garages rather than rushing onto the track.

The venue, which has been confirmed as remaining on the Formula 1 calendar until 2035, was relatively quiet during the opening minutes as teams assessed conditions and prepared their final programmes before qualifying.

One of the first drivers to venture out was Nico Hulkenberg, who was desperate to recover valuable track time after failing to complete any running on Friday.

The Audi driver’s car had been handed to Formula 3 runner-up Freddie Slater during FP1, but the youngster’s appearance ended prematurely because of a mechanical issue, which subsequently prevented Hulkenberg from taking part in FP2.

That left the German facing a particularly important final practice session as he looked to gather data and familiarise himself with the circuit conditions before qualifying.

Russell was another early runner, with the Mercedes driver already facing a five-place grid penalty following an internal combustion engine change.

Team-mate Antonelli also reported a potential problem with his steering wheel, although the issue did little to prevent the Italian from immediately finding competitive pace.

With all drivers initially running Pirelli’s Medium compound, Antonelli moved to the top of the timesheets approaching the 10-minute mark with a 1m 12.497s.

The newly crowned champion, who secured his maiden title at the Mexico City Grand Prix, continued to demonstrate the form that had carried him to the championship as Mercedes established an early benchmark.

However, Aston Martin’s difficult weekend took another turn when Lance Stroll was instructed to return to the pits after the team detected a problem with his car.

The Canadian’s running ended after just 15 minutes due to an Energy Recovery System (ERS) issue, leaving him unable to complete the remainder of the session.

Back at the front, Antonelli improved his benchmark to 1m 12.214s, narrowly beating Verstappen as the Red Bull driver attempted to respond.

Verstappen pushed hard in search of additional pace but ran off the circuit at Turn 4 during one of his attempts, highlighting the fine margins on the demanding Interlagos layout.

While the battle for outright performance continued, attention also turned towards the mounting grid penalties affecting several leading drivers.

Verstappen was already set to start from the back following multiple power unit changes, while Ferrari’s Hamilton and Leclerc were each handed 10-place grid penalties after changes to their internal combustion engines.

Russell’s five-place penalty added a further twist to the starting order, raising the prospect of a significantly reshuffled grid regardless of the qualifying results.

For Hamilton, however, the afternoon became increasingly concerning as the seven-time world champion began reporting problems with his Ferrari power unit.

The Briton complained of “strange vibrations with the engine”, prompting the team to bring him back into the pits for checks.

Hamilton eventually returned to the circuit, but his problems quickly escalated when he reported “smoke in the cockpit”, accompanied by an abnormal engine noise.

Ferrari called him back once again, and with approximately 25 minutes remaining, his session was effectively over as the team investigated the issue.

It represented another frustrating setback for Hamilton, who had already endured a difficult Friday at Interlagos and now faced the prospect of further power unit changes on top of his existing grid penalty.

Despite the technical disruption, the remainder of the field continued its preparations, although teams delayed their final qualifying simulations until the closing stages.

With just 15 minutes remaining, the Soft compound finally appeared as drivers switched their attention towards extracting maximum performance over a single flying lap.

Russell was the first to break the 1m 12s barrier, briefly putting Mercedes at the top of the leaderboard before the times began tumbling across the leading teams.

Norris quickly went faster for McLaren, continuing the strong pace he had shown when topping FP1 on Friday.

Antonelli then responded to reclaim first place, demonstrating that Mercedes remained firmly in contention despite the earlier steering wheel concern.

But Verstappen ultimately delivered the decisive lap, posting a 1m 11.622s to move ahead of the Italian and secure the fastest time of the session.

The top four were separated by just 0.184s, with Verstappen, Antonelli, Norris and Russell all closely matched as the battle for pole position began to take shape.

Drivers attempted to find further improvements on second flying laps using the same sets of Soft tyres, but the majority struggled to extract additional performance.

That left Verstappen’s benchmark unbeaten as the chequered flag fell, with the Dutchman securing Red Bull’s first practice-topping performance of the weekend.

The session ended just as heavy rain began arriving at Interlagos, adding another element of uncertainty ahead of qualifying and raising the possibility of rapidly changing track conditions.

Antonelli remained second, only 0.025s behind Verstappen, while Norris completed the top three ahead of Russell and Leclerc.

Oscar Piastri finished sixth in the second McLaren, giving the team both cars inside the top six after another competitive practice session.

Racing Bulls enjoyed a strong showing, with Arvid Lindblad placing seventh ahead of team-mate Liam Lawson in eighth.

Isack Hadjar finished ninth for Red Bull, while home favourite Gabriel Bortoleto rounded out the top 10 for Audi.

Pierre Gasly led Alpine’s efforts in 11th, followed by Hamilton in 12th after his Ferrari engine problems brought an early end to his session.

Hulkenberg finished 13th, completing valuable mileage after his frustrating Friday, while Franco Colapinto took 14th for Alpine.

Brazilian rookie Rafael Camara continued his first Formula 1 race weekend with 15th place for Haas, finishing ahead of team-mate Oliver Bearman in 16th.

Alex Albon was 17th for Williams, followed by Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin and Carlos Sainz in the second Williams.

Cadillac driver Sergio Perez finished 20th, although the Mexican was placed under investigation after appearing to discard an object from his cockpit during the session.

Team-mate Valtteri Bottas was 21st, while Stroll completed the 22-driver classification after his ERS failure restricted him to just 15 minutes of running.

With Verstappen fastest and the leading four drivers covered by less than two tenths, the final practice session suggested a fiercely competitive qualifying battle at Interlagos.

However, the significant grid penalties for Verstappen, Russell and both Ferrari drivers mean the eventual starting order could look very different from the qualifying timesheets.

Ferrari also faces an anxious period of analysis following Hamilton’s repeated engine problems, with further changes potentially required before the race.

For Verstappen, topping FP3 provided encouragement after a challenging start to the weekend, but his expected back-of-the-grid start means Sunday will likely require another recovery drive.

Antonelli, meanwhile, remained firmly in the fight for pole position after finishing second, while Norris and Russell also demonstrated the pace to challenge at the front.

With heavy rain arriving at the end of practice, weather conditions could now become the decisive factor as teams prepare for Saturday’s qualifying session, potentially setting up another unpredictable afternoon at one of Formula 1’s most dramatic circuits.