AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly topped a wet final practice session at Istanbul Park ahead of Formula 1’s Turkish Grand Prix.
Heavy rain through the morning let the circuit soaked though conditions gradually improved throughout the course of the session.
There were no repeats of the wet-weather grip struggles the drivers encountered during 2020’s rain-hit weekend, with Gasly’s fastest time 17 seconds up on Lance Stroll’s pole time from 11 months ago.
Drivers nonetheless remained on the green-banded Intermediate tyres throughout the session, with puddles lingering in some patches, most prominently at Turn 9, which caught out a few runners.
Gasly moved to the front of the timesheets on a 1:30.447s, 0.164s clear of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, with the Dutchman’s team-mate Sergio Perez third.
Ferrari finished fourth and fifth respectively, Carlos Sainz in front of Charles Leclerc, while Fernando Alonso took sixth for Alpine.
Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Räikkönen took seventh, in front of AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda, Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas and Alpine’s Esteban Ocon.
World Champion Lewis Hamilton, who will drop 10 places on the grid from wherever he qualifies, classified a low-key 18th in the session.
Hamilton completed only five laps during the session, fewer only than Williams’ George Russell, who spun off.
Russell slid wide through Turn 2 early in the session on his first push lap and beached his Williams FW43B in the gravel trap.
Qualifying is scheduled for 15:00 local time
[motorsport_result id=’74301′]
