We are back in Budapest Hungary for the 2022 Hungarian Grand Prix for FP3 (Practice 3), the 13th race of the season.
We are back for FP3 (Practice 3) at the Hungaroring Circuit in Budapest, Hungary. There is an impulsive track, as will be the race.
The weather patterns are fickle, with sopping rain and a waterlogged track.
Teams have fitted their cars with Inters (Intermediate tyres).
In FP3 we will see more pace and precision by the drivers around these slow to medium corners (not as fast here as in the earlier race tracks).
The advantage goes to Ferrari over Red Bull Racing and Mercedes for the top three teams in the race. But as we saw last season, this is a fickle track and weather patterns can turn on a dime.
Pay attention to the midfield teams of McLaren, AlphaTauri and Alpine, as one of them did take the podium during last season’s race here at the Hungaroring Circuit.
Rain or no rain the drivers will be pushing the outer limits of the track for the best line as drivers and engineers relay vital information on their cars and track conditions before qualifications.
Collecting data on the three sectors, speed, braking and location around the track is essential information come Race Day Sunday.
Opportunities will be available to overtake coming out of the Hairpin. The track is tight with bending turns but has slow to medium corners.
Look out for turns 1 and 5 where we saw drivers not being able to tame the tight corners when race pace is applied.
Practice 3 Brief
We have a green light and they are off onto the track.
The Midfield teams lead out onto the track and you can see the spray of water coming from the back of the cars, very calming to see.
The weather conditions are poor. The track is saturated with rain and waterlogged.
(Note: All teams have fitted their carriages with intermediate tyres, “rain tyres for better grip.”)
45 mins into the session… Drivers are cautiously driving around the track.. Not much on the timesheet as the session before qualification is not worth taking extra risk which could end up with a crash into the barrier.
Wait a minute! As were writing we see an Aston Martin crash into the barrier. It looks like Vettel, yes! It is Vettel, so it looked like he came in too fast into the tight corners.
As we come to the end of the session we see,two of Team William’s drivers into the top 3.
No! this is not an error! Latifi from Team Williams finishes with a time of 1:41.480.
Leclerc finishes with a time of 1:42141 and Albon from Team Williams finishes with a time of 1:42.381.
Finishing in the the top five we also have Verstappen from team Red Bull Racing finishing with a time of 1:43.205 and Russell from Mercedes finishes with a time of 1:43.434.
What an unpredictable track!!!
Quote
“I would have preferred to see it dry no doubt. The rain is always more difficult. The track is evolving and it’s difficult to find the right window for the tyres,” Ferrari Team Principal Mattia Binotto
Schedule
Next up is the main event for the day, Qualifications.
Qualifications Q1, Q2, & Q3 go from 10:00 – 11:00 a.m. our time.
Sunday July 31, 2022
Race Day is on Sunday July 31st. The race starting time is 9:00 a.m., Our coverage starts at 7:45 a.m. with our pre race report.
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