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Lando Norris Dominates FP3 with Gritty Display Shaking Ferrari
Highlights
- Lando Norris topped FP3, ending Ferrari’s strong pace at Hungarian GP
- Sergio Perez retired early due to Cadillac’s mechanical failure
- Kimi Antonelli recovered well to secure a top-three FP3 finish
- Lewis Hamilton posted a 1:18.056 lap, second fastest in FP3
- Charles Leclerc finished fourth, struggling to match Norris and Hamilton
- FP3 showcased tight competition among McLaren, Ferrari, and Mercedes teams
Lando Norris sets the FP3 benchmark at the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix, edging Lewis Hamilton by around a tenth. The McLaren driver halts Ferrari’s momentum and shapes a finely poised qualifying battle.
The session opens tentatively after a scrappy Friday, with mileage at a premium. Franco Colapinto uses the quiet early phase to log laps in clear air and recover track time.
Once running resumes, Oscar Piastri lays the first marker, a 1:19.918 on softs. Norris immediately lowers that to 1:19.062, asserting McLaren’s baseline pace on an evolving surface.
Isack Hadjar keeps the Racing Bulls within touch as Ferrari joins the fight, consistent with Ferrari’s strong pace earlier in the weekend. The top group compresses as grip improves.
Hamilton clocks a 1:18.056, but Norris dips into the 1:17s to secure FP3 P1 by roughly a tenth.
Kimi Antonelli rebounds from a difficult FP2 to climb into the top three, finding late-session confidence. He trims more than four tenths from Charles Leclerc’s earlier reference.
Piastri responds as the track rubbers in, splitting Antonelli and Leclerc. Norris counters again, shaving another half-tenth to reassert McLaren control at the top.
Sergio Perez’s Cadillac triggers the sole red flag after an early mechanical failure at Turn 2.
The final 15 minutes bring the decisive times. Leclerc posts 1:18.668, Hamilton raises the bar with 1:18.056, then Norris breaks into the 1:17s to close out the session.
George Russell cannot match Hamilton’s rhythm and ends sixth, more than half a second adrift. The split highlights Mercedes’ narrow operating window on short-run balance.
Rookie Kimi Antonelli finishes in the top three, capping an assured recovery from FP2 struggles.
Aston Martin drifts to the lower midfield, with Fernando Alonso 17th and Lance Stroll 18th. Liam Lawson continues to impress, fending off Audi-powered opposition as the pack tightens.
The competitive picture remains finely balanced among McLaren, Ferrari, and Mercedes. Norris’s composure under pressure echoes themes from recent pressure-cooker performances that have elevated his frontrunner status.
Qualifying will turn on track evolution, tyre warm-up, and execution in a condensed window. That follows a closely matched practice finale and the sense Ferrari still holds latent single-lap threat, consistent with its perceived Hungaroring advantage.
Visual Summary
Norris 🚀
Hamilton ⚡
Leclerc
Antonelli
Norris Strikes First in Hungary!
Disrupts Ferrari’s dominance with a lightning-fast 1:17.8 ⚡
FP3 Top 3:
Norris
/
Hamilton
/
Leclerc
Norris
/
Hamilton
/
Leclerc
🚩 Perez stops, Cadillac breaks down
🐂 Hadjar threatens front row
🔺 Piastri: early charge
Spread in Top 4:
0.37s
0.37s
⚡
Qualifying showdown coming up –
will Norris keep the lightning pace?
Daniel Miller reports on Formula 1 Grand Prix weekends with race-day analysis, team-radio highlights, and point-standings updates. He explains power-unit upgrades, aerodynamic developments, and driver rivalries in straightforward, SEO-friendly language for a global F1 audience.
