Verstappen escapes FIA investigation, completes Saudi Arabian GP practice clean sweep

Ewan Gale
Saturday 18 March 2023 14:34 - Updated: 16:52

Max Verstappen has escaped an investigation by FIA stewards after finishing fastest in final practice for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

The Dutchman set a best lap of one minute, 28.660secs, 0.642s faster than team-mate Sergio Perez.

But the Red Bull driver can consider himself lucky to avoid an investigation for impeding Lando Norris through turns seven and eight.

The McLaren was on a flying lap when blocked by Verstappen, with the degree of danger setting the incident apart from other traffic issues across the weekend so far.

The stewards, however, deemed no investigation was necessary, with the two-time champion offering an apology to Norris in the aftermath.

A number of dramas hit during the final hour of running before qualifying, with Nyck de Vries forced to sit out the session as AlphaTauri was forced into a power unit change.

READ MORE: De Vries OUT of FP3 as AlphaTauri PU change required

Ferrari's reliability has been under scrutiny with Charles Leclerc braced for a 10-place grid penalty after qualifying and for the second day in a row, the Monégasque complained of issues getting away from the practice start area at pit exit.

Team-mate Carlos Sainz warned of "derating" in the sister SF-23, though that is an issue a software change on his steering wheel should solve.

Elsewhere, Esteban Ocon almost suffered a crash that would have replicated Mick Schumacher's weekend-ending incident from last season.

The Frenchman was lucky his Alpine straightened after sliding across the kerbs through turns 10, 11 and 12.

Verstappen waited until the end of the session to fit a set of soft tyres and easily finished top, though it was revealed during the session that Red Bull had changed his gearbox.

Fernando Alonso was third for Aston Martin ahead of team-mate Lance Stroll, though each driver was a second down on Verstappen's best effort.

READ MORE: Saudi Arabia 'considering' second F1 GP bid

Lewis Hamilton was on a par for Mercedes and finished fifth ahead of Leclerc and the resurgent McLaren duo of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, who piqued optimism for the Woking-based team ahead of qualifying - albeit in unrepresentative conditions.

Pierre Gasly wound up ninth-fastest for Alpine ahead of Sainz, with the second Mercedes of George Russell 11th.

Saudi Arabian Grand Prix final practice results

1. Max Verstappen [Red Bull] - 1:28.485

2. Sergio Perez [Red Bull] - +0.613secs

3. Fernando Alonso [Aston Martin] - +0.998s

4. Lance Stroll [Aston Martin] - +1.024s

5. Lewis Hamilton [Mercedes] - +1.083s

6. Charles Leclerc [Ferrari] - +1.103s

7. Lando Norris [McLaren] - +1.205s

8. Oscar Piastri [McLaren] - +1.213s

9. Pierre Gasly [Alpine] - +1.216s

10. Carlos Sainz [Ferrari] - +1.276s

11. George Russell [Mercedes] - +1.326s

12. Zhou Guanyu [Alfa Romeo] - +1.432s

13. Nico Hulkenberg [Haas] - +1.448s

14. Esteban Ocon [Alpine] - +1,468s

15. Alex Albon [Williams] - +1.498s

16. Logan Sargeant [Williams] - +1.550s

17. Kevin Magnussen [Haas] - +1.646s

18. Valtteri Bottas [Alfa Romeo] - +1.832s

19. Yuki Tsunoda [AlphaTauri] - +2.312s

20. Nyck de Vries [AlphaTauri] - NO TIME