2021 F1 Mexican GP FP3 Results: Sergio Perez outpaces the field in the final practice session in Mexico
Sergio Perez topped the third practice session at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez circuit ahead of the 2021 Mexican GP. The Mexican outpaced his team-team-mate verstappen" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-is-sponsored="false">Max Verstappen and reigning champion Lewis Hamilton on the home ground. The Dutchman and Briton were second and third fastest respectively in the session.
Perez's fastest lap was clocked at 1 minute 17.024 seconds, two-tenths of a second quicker than his team-mate and six-and-a-half tenths of a second quicker than Hamilton.
His pace in the session clearly displayed Red Bull Racing team’s advantage at the Mexican circuit. His pace lead over Hamilton is the largest margin this season.
Perez beat Verstappen and Hamilton in the third practice session ahead of the 2021 Mexican GP
Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas clocked the fourth fastest time of the practice session, followed by Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz. Alpha Tauri driver Yuki Tsunoda clocked the sixth fastest time of the session.
McLaren driver Daniel Ricciardo clocked the seventh fastest lap, followed by Alpha Tauri Pierre Gasly, who clocked in at eighth fastest. Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc clocked the ninth fastest lap while McLaren driver Lando Norris was the the tenth fastest one, completing the top 10 fastest drivers of the practice session.
Aston Martin driver Lance Stroll clocked the 11th fastest lap, followed by Alpha Tauri drivers Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi finishing with the 12th and 13th fastest laps respectively. Raikkonen’s former team-mate, Sebastian Vettel clocked the 14th fastest lap of the practice session.
Alpine drivers Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon clocked the 15th and 16th fastest laps of the practice session respectively. Along with them, Williams driver George Russell clocked the 17th fastest lap of the session followed by Haas driver Mick Schumacher.
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Williams driver Nicholas Latifi clocked the 19th fastest lap followed by Haas driver Nikita Mazepin who clocked the slowest lap of the entire practice session. Overall the Red Bull Racing drivers seemed to have the upper hand in terms of one lap qualifying pace, while the Mercedes looked like they were struggling for grip on the soft tire compounds.
Apart from the Mercedes, Verstappen was unable to improvise his lap during the penultimate moments of the session due to grip issues with the soft compound. Therefore there is a two-tenths gap between the two Red Bull Racing drivers.