McLaren driver Lando Norris set the fastest time during a windy final practice session for Formula 1’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
The McLaren driver posted a time of 1:41.223s to finish 0.222s clear of reigning World Champion Max Verstappen around the streets of Baku in the final one-hour session prior to qualifying.
Championship leader Oscar Piastri had a scrappy start to the session with traffic and a mistake through Turn 4, followed by a wide moment at Turn 1, prompting the Australian to abandon successive push laps.
But Piastri recovered to wind up in third place, 0.254s behind team-mate Norris, with Lewis Hamilton the lead Ferrari driver in fourth position.
Mercedes finished in fifth and sixth respectively, as rookie Kimi Antonelli edged George Russell by a tenth of a second, though the pair faced a deficit of six-tenths to Norris.
Alex Albon was seventh for Williams while Oliver Bearman kept up his and Haas’ eye-catching one-lap pace by classifying in eighth overall.
Bearman made his Haas debut in Baku 12 months ago and also claimed a double victory in Formula 2 in 2023.
Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson spun through Turn 16 on the harder tyres early in the session but recovered to finish ninth, while Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc rounded out the top 10 after a wide moment into Turn 3 on his final push lap.
Isack Hadjar finished in 11th place for Racing Bulls while Nico Hulkenberg complained of seat issues post-session in his Sauber after classifying in 12th place.
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