Max with spec C fifth in final Italian free practice

Published on 01 September 2018 by Mike Motilall

Max Verstappen finished fifth during the third and final free practice in Monza with a 1:21.388. He trails Sebastian Vettel by eight tenths of a second, who led the pack in his Ferrari. The Dutch Aston Martin Red Bull Racing-driver went out on track for the first time with the improved Renault power unit, the spec C. Team mate Daniel Ricciardo was the first to initiate the engine on Friday.

The third free practice gets underway with some overcast and on a partially damp tarmac as well. Prior to this session the Heavens had opened up. After a few installation laps and halfway the one hour’s session, Max clocks a 1:22.166 in his first outing on the soft compound tyre, good enough for fourth at that moment.

While the majority of the field is busy doing their thing on the softer super-softs, including the top three, Max betters his lap time by a tenth, not much later he blows that out of the water with a 1:21.816. However, he is left stranded in fourth.

With still ten minutes left on the clock, Max is out on track with the super-softs strapped on to his RB14 and has a qualifying run on his mind. While the track is getting quicker and the lap times drop, Max does a 1:21.388 and finishes fifteen laps later in fifth.

The fight at the front is won by Vettel, who beats Lewis Hamilton by eight hundredths of a second. Kimi Raikkonen follows by one tenth, while Valtteri Bottas is six tenths a stray. It is evident that Red Bull Racing is not able to give the front runners a run for their money with the spec C. The pole is still something reserved for only Ferrari and Mercedes.

Italian GP contest: win a signed orange Max Verstappen driver cap!

Results third free practice Italy: