Yas Marina Circuit hosted the final free practice session Friday ahead of this weekendS abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the last race of the 2025 Formula 1 season and a pivotal event with a three-way championship battle on the line. Despite agreeable track conditions, the session offered a limited preview of the cooler temperatures expected for Saturday’s qualifying and Sunday’s race. A late-session incident involving Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton, who thankfully escaped injury, briefly halted proceedings as crews worked to repair barrier damage.
The final free practice session of the 2025 season concluded Friday at Yas Marina, as teams prepared for qualifying and Sunday’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Despite good daytime conditions – air temperature at 27°C and track temperature at 39°C – the session wasn’t fully representative of the cooler, nighttime conditions expected for qualifying and the race.
Aston Martin were the first to take to the track, with other teams joining in shortly after. Alpine’s Pierre Gasly was the first to set a representative time, a 1’25.984 on soft tires, but it was quickly eclipsed as more drivers emerged from the pits.
After roughly 12 minutes, championship leader Lando Norris ventured out, immediately challenging for the top spot. The McLaren driver quickly improved his time, eventually posting a 1’24.533, though the lap included a significant slide.
Hamilton Briefly Leads Before Incident
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Lewis Hamilton briefly took the lead after 25 minutes, but Max Verstappen responded with a 1’24.245. However, the session took a turn for the Ferrari driver just past the 30-minute mark. Approaching Turn 9, Hamilton’s SF-25 suddenly lost grip and spun into the Tecpro barriers.
The driver was unharmed, but a red flag was immediately deployed while the car was recovered and barrier repairs were made. The session resumed with 17 minutes remaining.
Verstappen quickly improved to a 1’24.116 on used soft tires. Oscar Piastri then posted a 1’23.593 on new tires, but Norris responded with a blistering 1’23.338. Meanwhile, Mercedes encountered trouble in the pit lane, releasing Kimi Antonelli into the path of Yuki Tsunoda, resulting in contact and damage to both cars.
Shortly after, George Russell moved to the top of the timesheets with a 1’23.334, edging out Norris by just 0.004 seconds and Verstappen by 0.180 seconds – the latter complaining of continued bouncing despite being on new tires. In a final push after the checkered flag, Verstappen managed to improve to within 0.124 seconds of Russell’s time. Fernando Alonso (+0.251) and Oscar Piastri (+0.259) rounded out the top five. Esteban Ocon and Oliver Bearman of Haas followed, with Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari, Kimi Antonelli, and Alexander Albon completing the top ten.
Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Free Practice 3
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