The third and final practice session in Brazil took place on a damp track, with Renault’s Robert Kubica securing the top spot, ending Sebastian Vettel’s reign.
However, the German wasn’t far behind. Vettel finished second, three tenths slower than Kubica.
McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton came in third. It was a busy session for the Brit as he and the team tested two rear-wings, a low and a high downforce version, whilst team-mate Button chose to run the lower downforce version for the entire session, finally finishing a low ninth.
Home favourite Felipe Massa finished ahead of his team-mate and current championship leader, Fernando Alonso. Fourth and fifth respectively.
Vitaly Petrov and Sebastian Buemi rounded off the top seven, with both drivers impressing in the conditions.
Despite the weather, mistakes were kept to a minimum with just a few drivers venturing off the track.
Brazilian Free Practice 3 Results:
| Pos | Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9. | J. Button | McLaren | 1:20.164 |
| 2. | S. Vettel | Red Bull | 1:19.500 |
| 3. | L. Hamilton | McLaren | 1:19.536 |
| 1. | R. Kubica | Renault | 1:19.191 |
| 8. | N. Rosberg | Mercedes | 1:20.056 |
| 11. | M. Webber | Red Bull | 1:20.337 |
| 16. | V. Liuzzi | Force India | 1:20.546 |
| 5. | F. Alonso | Ferrari | 1:19.791 |
| 4. | F. Massa | Ferrari | 1:19.735 |
| 12. | M Schumacher | Mercedes | 1:20.421 |
| 14. | N. Hulkenberg | Williams | 1:20.535 |
| 17. | A. Sutil | Force India | 1:20.613 |
| 6. | V. Petrov | Renaut | 1:19.887 |
| 7. | S. Buemi | Toro Rosso | 1:20.009 |
| 18. | N. Heidfeld | Sauber | 1:20.985 |
| 13. | K. Kobayashi | Sauber | 1:20.452 |
| 15. | J. Alguersuari | Toro Rosso | 1:20.541 |
| 20. | T. Glock | Virgin | 1:22.449 |
| 19. | J. Trulli | Lotus | 1:22.326 |
| 22. | L. Di Grassi | Virgin | 1:23.194 |
| 21. | H. Kovalainen | Lotus | 1:22.874 |
| 23. | B. Senna | Hispania | 1:23.358 |
| 10. | R. Barrichello | Williams | 1:20.320 |
| 24. | C. Klien | Hispania | 1:23.650 |
