Lando Norris smiles as he holds up his fist after winning the Australian Grand Prix
Is this Lando Norris’s year?
Lando Norris topped the final practice session ahead of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in a display of McLaren dominance.
Oscar Piastri was the only driver to get close to Norris, forced to settle for P2 in the sister McLaren, while Max Verstappen found himself strangely irked by Lewis Hamilton in the run-off.
Lando Norris tops Saudi GP FP2: Can McLaren be stopped?
Ahead of qualifying for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, the drivers had one final hour of practice at their disposal to get their set-ups fine-tuned and their plans in order.
Gabriel Bortoleto was looking to make up for lost time with a new Sauber chassis, after missing FP2 on Friday, and clocked a 1:32.1 on the mediums for the pack to chase.
All the while, George Russell was still tucking into a snack in the Mercedes garage, in what proved a quiet start to the session on-track.
Latest analysis from the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix
👉 The Max Verstappen ‘bonus’ found in McLaren battle data analysis
👉 Hamilton and Leclerc boost as Ferrari continue upgrade push at Saudi Arabian GP
The Ferraris were the first of the big-hitters to join the leaderboard, but with Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc seven-tenths off new leader Jack Doohan, there was more time to come.
Piastri would soon go half-a-second clear out front with a 1:29.118, as Norris slotted into P2 less than a tenth behind his McLaren team-mate.
Oliver Bearman improved to P3 for Haas as he reported that the “front axle is much stronger than yesterday”, while Doohan would be required to report to the stewards post-session for a potential failure to follow the race director’s instructions via a pit-lane infringement.
