The final practice session ahead of qualifying at the Australian GP ended with George Russell setting the fastest time for Mercedes, but the hour was heavily disrupted by incidents and delays at Albert Park.
Russell topped FP3 with a strong late lap, finishing ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc as the leading teams continued their tight battle at the front. The session completed a fascinating sequence across the weekend, with Leclerc fastest in FP1, Oscar Piastri leading FP2 and Russell ending practice on top.
However, the biggest moment of the session came when Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli crashed heavily, bringing out the red flag and leaving his participation in qualifying uncertain.
A delayed start to the final Australian GP practice session
FP3 at the Australian GP began later than scheduled after barrier repairs were required following an earlier Formula 3 crash. The delay reduced valuable preparation time for teams already working to fine-tune their setups before qualifying.
Once the session began, drivers immediately headed out to make up for the lost running. Albert Park’s temporary circuit conditions meant grip levels were still evolving, with teams eager to lay down rubber and understand tyre behaviour ahead of the crucial qualifying session later in the day.
Track conditions were stable, with warm temperatures and very little wind providing ideal circumstances for performance runs.
Ferrari and McLaren remain close at the front
The competitive picture at the Australian GP remained extremely tight during the early part of FP3.
Lewis Hamilton initially set the benchmark with a 1:20.176, narrowly ahead of Charles Leclerc as Ferrari continued to show strong pace across the weekend. Oscar Piastri also remained firmly in the fight, briefly moving to the top of the timesheets despite running on older soft tyres.
McLaren’s performance continued to impress, especially given that Piastri had already topped Friday’s second practice session in front of his home crowd.
With Ferrari, Mercedes and McLaren all trading fastest laps throughout the session, the early indications suggested that qualifying could feature one of the closest battles in recent seasons.
Russell delivers a late statement for Mercedes
While several drivers were still preparing final push laps, Russell delivered a decisive performance to end the Australian GP practice sessions.
The Mercedes driver produced a lap more than half a second faster than the earlier benchmark times, finishing six tenths ahead of Hamilton and nearly seven tenths clear of Leclerc.
The pace immediately positioned Russell as one of the favourites for pole position heading into qualifying. Mercedes had appeared relatively conservative during Friday’s running, but the W17 looked significantly stronger once the team began its qualifying simulations.
For Russell, the lap reinforced his status as one of the drivers to beat this weekend.
Antonelli crash causes major disruption
The most dramatic moment of FP3 at the Australian GP came when Kimi Antonelli crashed heavily, bringing the session to an abrupt halt.
Replays showed the Mercedes rookie taking slightly too much kerb through Turn 2, which unsettled the rear of the car and sent him into the wall at high speed. With barriers located close to the track in that section, the impact caused substantial damage to the rear of the car.
Antonelli was able to climb out of the car unhurt, but the crash triggered a lengthy red flag as marshals recovered the wreckage. The damage left Mercedes facing a significant repair job ahead of qualifying.
Given the limited time between sessions, it remains uncertain whether Antonelli’s car will be fully rebuilt in time.
Reliability concerns continue across the grid
The final practice session at the Australian GP also saw reliability problems affecting several teams.
Carlos Sainz suffered another mechanical issue for Williams and was forced to stop near the pit lane entry, continuing the team’s difficult start to the weekend. Alex Albon also experienced a brief power unit issue but managed to return to the pits after resetting systems on the steering wheel.
Aston Martin faced their own problems, with Lance Stroll missing the session due to ongoing work on the car’s internal combustion engine. Fernando Alonso managed to complete several laps, though the team continues to search for solutions after earlier power unit concerns.
These issues underline how challenging the early stages of the 2026 regulation era have been for several teams.
A wide-open battle heading into qualifying
After three practice sessions at the Australian GP, predicting the qualifying outcome remains difficult.
Russell finished the final session fastest, but Ferrari have been consistently quick throughout the weekend. McLaren also appear capable of challenging for the front rows, particularly with Piastri performing strongly on home soil.
Red Bull remain another unpredictable factor. Max Verstappen has experienced several issues across practice but still demonstrated competitive pace, while rookie Isack Hadjar has impressed during his debut weekend.
With such small margins separating the top teams, qualifying at Albert Park promises to deliver a thrilling start to the 2026 Formula 1 season.
All eyes now turn to the first grid-setting session of the year, where the true competitive order will finally be revealed.
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