A close finish between Mercedes and Ferrari sparks an intriguing battle in qualifying for pole position ahead of Sunday’s Austrian Grand Prix.
Sebastian Vettel of Mercedes came out on top in the final practice session ahead of qualifying, edging out Lewis Hamilton by just 0.029 seconds.
The latter will undoubtedly be disappointed after missing out by such a small margin but the Brit did claim first spot in the previous two practice sessions.
As for Vettel, he clocked a new lap record of 1.04.070 as Mercedes embarked on their second weekend with their new engine.
The nail biting finish wasn’t the only thing that sparked drama in the final practice race.
That’s because Romain Grosjean of Haas was involved in a near miss involving one of Toro Rosso’s staff members during the session.
The French racer, who finished 11th in the French Grand Prix last weekend, turned in for a pit stop but faced a scare when a member of Toro Rosso’s staff appeared to step out in Grosjean’s path.
Luckily, the incident was nothing more than a fright and no one was injured.
Given what happened to the Ferrari mechanic earlier in the season, it was a very lucky escape
Grosjean finished the circuit in seventh with a time of 1.04.916, just under a second in front of teammate Kevin Magnussen.
It was a similar story for the Frenchman in the previous two practice sessions, occupying seventh spot in both occasions.
As for Toro Rosso, Pierre Gasly claimed 12th whilst Brendon Hartley finished the session in 17th in Saturday’s practice.
The main event takes place tomorrow at 14:10 at the Red Bull Ring.