Reigning World Champion Max Verstappen set the fastest time during the dry final practice session for Formula 1’s Japanese Grand Prix.
Wet weather plagued Suzuka throughout Friday’s action but Saturday’s session took place in warm and dry conditions, allowing drivers to utilise slicks.
Verstappen surged to the front on a time of 1:30.671s on his Soft tyre run during the closing stages, setting the fastest time in all three sectors of the lap, to finish three-tenths of a second clear of Ferrari pair Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc.
Verstappen can clinch a second world title on Sunday if he out-scores Leclerc by eight points and team-mate Sergio Perez by six.
Fernando Alonso displayed strong pace for Alpine by classifying fourth, ahead of Red Bull’s Perez and the Mercedes duo of George Russell and Lewis Hamilton.
Lando Norris was eighth for McLaren, ahead of Alpine’s Esteban Ocon, while Lance Stroll put Aston Martin inside the top 10 at the expense of Daniel Ricciardo.
Alexander Albon showed promise for Williams by taking 12th overall, ahead of Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas and Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel, with Haas duo Kevin Magnussen and Mick Schumacher next up.
It was a low-key session for AlphaTauri as home representative Yuki Tsunoda was only 17th while Pierre Gasly finished at the back of the 20-car field, having also baulked Russell through the hairpin.
Qualifying for the Japanese Grand Prix is scheduled for 15:00 local time.
| Position | Driver | Team | Time | Gap | Laps | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1:30.671 | 22 | |||
| 2 |
 | Carlos Sainz Jr | Ferrari | 1:30.965 | 0.294 | 27 | ||
| 3 |
 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:30.980 | 0.309 | 20 | ||
| 4 |
| Fernando Alonso | Alpine | 1:31.320 | 0.649 | 25 | ||
| 5 |
 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull | 1:31.514 | 0.843 | 28 | ||
| 6 |
 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1:31.530 | 0.859 | 25 | ||
| 7 |
| Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1:31.589 | 0.918 | 27 | ||
| 8 |
| Lando Norris | McLaren | 1:31.747 | 1.076 | 22 | ||
| 9 |
 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine | 1:31.750 | 1.079 | 25 | ||
| 10 |
 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 1:31.838 | 1.167 | 28 | ||
| 11 |
 | Daniel Ricciardo | McLaren | 1:31.860 | 1.189 | 28 | ||
| 12 |
 | Alex Albon | Williams | 1:31.946 | 1.275 | 26 | ||
| 13 |
 | Valtteri Bottas | Sauber | 1:31.971 | 1.300 | 24 | ||
| 14 |
 | Sebastian Vettel | Aston Martin | 1:32.222 | 1.551 | 25 | ||
| 15 |
 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | 1:32.290 | 1.619 | 23 | ||
| 16 |
| Mick Schumacher | Haas | 1:32.366 | 1.695 | 24 | ||
| 17 |
 | Yuki Tsunoda | RB | 1:32.377 | 1.706 | 26 | ||
| 18 |
 | Guanyu Zhou | Sauber | 1:32.385 | 1.714 | 24 | ||
| 19 |
| Nicholas Latifi | Williams | 1:32.868 | 2.197 | 26 | ||
| 20 |
| Pierre Gasly | RB | 1:32.881 | 2.210 | 24 |
