Sebastian Vettel comfortably led the chasing pack in practice three for the Korean Grand Prix to firmly plant himself as favourite for pole and the race win.
A late lap on the soft tyres brought Vettel’s quickest time down to a 1:37.642 to cement his position at the head of the times ahead of McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton.
Jenson Button put his McLaren third with Romain Grosjean and Kimi Raikkonen completing the top five.
Championship leader Fernando Alonso came in sixth ahead of Mark Webber who’s running was curbed due to an engine software issue.
The session was fairly quiet with the biggest complaint coming from HRT’s Narain Karthikeyan who felt he was blocked by Sergio Perez in a move similar to that of Michael Schumacher on Friday who was handed a reprimand for his actions.
FP3: 2012 Korean Grand Prix Times
| # | No. | Driver | Team | Time | Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | 1 | S. Vettel | Red Bull | 1:37.642 | 17 | |
| 02 | 4 | L. Hamilton | McLaren | 1:38.169 | 0.527 | 12 |
| 03 | 3 | J. Button | McLaren | 1:38.511 | 0.869 | 13 |
| 04 | 10 | R. Grosjean | Lotus | 1:38.582 | 0.940 | 16 |
| 05 | 9 | K. Räikkönen | Lotus | 1:38.666 | 1.024 | 18 |
| 06 | 5 | F. Alonso | Ferrari | 1:38.705 | 1.063 | 12 |
| 07 | 2 | M. Webber | Red Bull | 1:38.766 | 1.124 | 7 |
| 08 | 6 | F. Massa | Ferrari | 1:38.791 | 1.149 | 13 |
| 09 | 18 | P. Maldonado | Williams | 1:38.833 | 1.191 | 16 |
| 10 | 12 | N. Hulkenberg | Force India | 1:38.932 | 1.290 | 17 |
| 11 | 15 | S. Perez | Sauber | 1:38.954 | 1.312 | 17 |
| 12 | 8 | N. Rosberg | Mercedes | 1:39.010 | 1.368 | 20 |
| 13 | 7 | M. Schumacher | Mercedes | 1:39.150 | 1.508 | 18 |
| 14 | 11 | P. di Resta | Force India | 1:39.156 | 1.514 | 18 |
| 15 | 14 | K. Kobayashi | Sauber | 1:39.345 | 1.703 | 14 |
| 16 | 17 | J. Vergne | Toro Rosso | 1:39.448 | 1.806 | 17 |
| 17 | 16 | D. Ricciardo | Toro Rosso | 1:39.537 | 1.895 | 18 |
| 18 | 19 | B. Senna | Williams | 1:39.706 | 2.064 | 18 |
| 19 | 21 | V. Petrov | Caterham | 1:41.114 | 3.472 | 14 |
| 20 | 20 | H. Kovalainen | Caterham | 1:41.437 | 3.795 | 19 |
| 21 | 25 | C. Pic | Marussia | 1:41.684 | 4.042 | 16 |
| 22 | 24 | T. Glock | Marussia | 1:42.062 | 4.420 | 15 |
| 23 | 23 | N. Karthikeyan | HRT | 1:42.845 | 5.203 | 15 |
| 24 | 22 | P. de la Rosa | HRT | 1:42.882 | 5.240 | 14 |
