FP3 - Vettel fastest for Ferrari ahead of qualifying

Sebastian Vettel makes Mercedes nervous as he topped the leaderboard in this Saturday’s final practice ahead of qualifying at Monte Carlo.

With limited running on this past Thursday, drivers were quick to go out on track for proper running into the last hour-long session, and Vettel finished first two tenths up Nico Rosberg, half a second up Lewis Hamilton, who radioed in “something’s not right on the car” into the final minutes.

After the two Silver Arrows came Daniel Ricciardo in fourth, ahead of Carlos Sainz and Kimi Raikkonen. Speaking of which, Raikkonen was the first driver to hit Ste Devote. He lost his rear and punctured the number 7 car.

Also from the things gone wrong category, Max Verstappen went from running strongly to hitting Turn 19 backwards, as he was left with a broken rear wing, and we got a glimpse of a Lotus barely hitting one of the final corners.

We also learned Romain Grosjean is set for a gearbox grid penalty before FP3, as a result of the box failing to complete the six-race cycle required by the regulations.

What’s next? The all-important qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix - can Ferrari keep the pace to really challenge Mercedes, we’ll know in a couple of hours.

Top ten of the final practice:
1. Sebastian Vettel — 1:16.143
2. Nico Rosberg — +0.218s
3. Lewis Hamilton — +0.562s
4. Daniel Ricciardo — +0.977s
5. Carlos Sainz— +1.113s
6. Kimi Raikkonen — +1.258s
7. Daniil Kvyat — +1.328s
8. Jenson Button — +1.624s
9. Max Verstappen — +1.645s
10. Romain Grosjean — +1.663s