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00:00Because there is no time to be gained going into that corner with the DRS open.
00:03It's only for 20 meters, it's dangerous, doesn't give you any lap time.
00:06And I'm guessing the simulator, it just didn't bother.
00:09Out of laziness, it went through, so why bother closing it?
00:12Why move the finger?
00:13But then you build that habit.
00:14If you do 100 laps in a simulator doing something,
00:16you get there, you took the simulator,
00:18you're in the simulator, you put the DRS up,
00:20you don't even think about closing it,
00:22because your brain doesn't go where they're.
00:25Two secs, Ham.
00:25What happened there, Isaac?
00:27I had a problem in the cockpit.
00:29I need to know after.
00:31That's quite bad.
00:33Okay.
00:36Now I really would like to know what the problem was in the cockpit.
00:39We got a red flag.
00:41Already.
00:41Come back to you on Lance Stroll in a few moments time,
00:45but we have a red flag.
00:46And we had four yesterday in the practice session,
00:49two of which were because of grass fires by the side of the track,
00:54which the FIA have taken precautionary measures overnight
00:58to try and eradicate during the course of today.
01:00As we mentioned, the wind has dropped quite significantly,
01:05but the fires still remain.
01:08There you go at the hairpin at turn 11.
01:13I'm told there is the grass fire.
01:16And into 130R we go.
01:18Nice and flat.
01:20One hand.
01:21No, two hands.
01:22Two hands.
01:23Nice and flat.
01:24That's the way you take 130R these days.
01:27She came yesterday.
01:29Lando, for being generous, was experimenting with different lines.
01:33We're not being generous.
01:34We're getting a few of them wrong.
01:36Goes 129 sector.
01:37Charles Leclerc, who we're on board with now.
01:39Quickest in the middle sector.
01:41Now, this is a big day for Ferrari,
01:42who we've seen so far this year do very well on a Friday,
01:46and then go backwards a little bit on the Saturday at Australia.
01:50On the Sunday, Shanghai.
01:51The chassis.
01:52That might be an issue also for Red Bull this weekend,
01:54because you've heard Verstappen complain about a chassis
01:57that was collapsing, moving, bending.
02:00Flexing, yeah.
02:00Flexing.
02:02Oh, second sector catching out.
02:05Oscar Piastri, the second of the two Degners.
02:07He lost half a second through that part of the lap
02:09compared to his teammate, Lewis Hamilton,
02:12going quickest in the first sector.
02:14And we'll bring in Ant.
02:15Yeah, I was just going to say, Crofty,
02:16I think the problem with Degner 2 today
02:19is that the tailwind is going to be catching them out.
02:21We're talking about that.
02:22Ant, talk about the two McLarens here.
02:25Piastri and Norris.
02:27Oh, Norris just wide there.
02:28He's not the first one, huh?
02:30No, it's a tricky corner today.
02:31Degner 2, when the wind's not in your favour,
02:33when you're not turning into that headwind,
02:35they've got to relearn.
02:37So like Jacques was saying at the start,
02:38they've got to relearn this circuit today.
02:40It's a very different experience
02:41from what the track they were driving on yesterday.
02:44They've just got to stay behind a car
02:46and not go and do what they did.
02:48I would imagine...
02:49Whoa.
02:50Oh, that was a big snap.
02:53He's not happy with his car.
02:55It's not doing what he's used to.
02:58He's got bad habits to break.
03:02Good habits.
03:03Yeah, Ferrari habits to break.
03:05Did he get affected behind Piastri?
03:08Probably, but visually.
03:10Not by the airflow, but visually.
03:12And the visual effect is huge.
03:14Oh, no, you're not allowed to overtake on the right.
03:16Yeah, so this is it.
03:18I thought what McLaren is doing is not allowed.
03:21Good review.
03:23You see, he's read the instructions,
03:25as Carlos Sainz.
03:26He'd be the sort of man
03:27that when you go and buy a flat pack wardrobe
03:30from certain big stores,
03:33you'd want by your side
03:34because he will read the instructions
03:36before building it.
03:36Oh, so he does read it.
03:37Okay, he doesn't try first
03:39and then try to repair it.
03:40Like the rest of us do.
03:41Exactly.
03:42Meanwhile, Nico Hülkenberg
03:44barreling Jacques Villeneuve down towards Turn 1.
03:47It's...
03:49Oh, there was traffic there.
03:50That's not a good place.
03:52A slow car to beat.
03:53That was also really dodgy.
03:55There was a lot of garage Turn 1.
03:57Yeah, copy, Nico.
03:59Got the feeling that was Yuki Sanoga.
04:01The angle of attack around the final corner of 18
04:04and uses the DRS on this lap
04:06even though he's focusing on race setup.
04:08Like a wheel's not on or something.
04:10Carefully.
04:12Okay, we'll check everything.
04:15Grip from the tyre
04:16where you don't rely as much to the downforce
04:19pushing the car down on the ground.
04:21Sticky grip.
04:22Sticky grip.
04:23Yeah, you rely more on the mechanical,
04:26the suspensions,
04:26how the tyre works
04:27without that extra pressure from the air.
04:31Looking at the state of Max Verstappen's hard compound tyres,
04:35they look a little bit angry,
04:36to be fair, as he slides his way through the chicane.
04:40We'll see, but the Mercedes seems to always work now.
04:42It seems to be a much more neutral car,
04:44easy to drive.
04:45And last year was hit and miss.
04:48They would be great or awful.
04:49Now they seem to always be there in the hunt and in the battle.
04:53And he goes quickest, George Russell, with a 1.28.3.
04:56That is an ambitious attempt to try and get a paddock pass,
04:59I think, from that young fan there.
05:01And I respect their wishes.
05:03It would have been better if he had removed the boards.
05:05I was trying to read them.
05:06We've read that people are very excited.
05:08It's Saturday in Suzuka.
05:10What is there not to be excited about here?
05:12Gabriel Bortoletto's first trip to Suzuka as well.
05:17Opportunity.
05:18A bit bumpy there.
05:19Focus on exit.
05:21Yeah, I know, I almost went out.
05:26Now, would you fancy Fernando Alonso as your manager?
05:30I'm not sure Fernando has that much time to give him on the race weekend.
05:34That might be a little bit odd.
05:38When he stops driving, yes, definitely.
05:41Yeah, he's got a contract for next year.
05:43Oh, look how the...
05:44That looks a bit flappy, doesn't it?
05:45Yeah.
05:46That can't be good.
05:47That can't be quick.
05:48It's related to him starting the season knowing,
05:50OK, I can be world champion this year.
05:52He did not have that pressure last year.
05:54And suddenly, oh, wow, I can win.
05:56So he just carried on and became stronger and stronger.
05:58Now you have three months of winter thinking,
05:59OK, I know it's my chance.
06:01I need to go for it.
06:02Different attitude.
06:03And he's been making those mistakes since the beginning of the season.
06:07But look at the lap times there.
06:08The last sector, he got the record there.
06:10So amazing last sector.
06:12Four tenths quicker than Verstappen in that last sector.
06:14This is Norris.
06:15Oh, yeah.
06:16It wasn't super wide, but just enough for him to back off
06:19and maybe damage his floor again.
06:20He's got the rear.
06:21Oh, just not by much.
06:23But that wouldn't have counted in quality anyway.
06:26So Verstappen had a huge toe on the backstretch.
06:29And still four tenths off.
06:30One answer, Krofty, on what the Ferrari has up its sleeve.
06:34Give it another 30 seconds and you'll see the beginning
06:36of Lewis Hamilton's lap on a brand new set of soft tyres.
06:40So how much have they had to compromise the setup of that Ferrari,
06:43if at all?
06:45And where is he going to end up?
06:46Can he find?
06:47Is he half a second?
06:48The last time I looked to the pace setter of Oscar Piastri,
06:52Hamilton in the Ferrari.
06:53Pretty difficult to find half a second.
06:55We're about to get an answer.
06:56And then you get to the mid-corner point
06:57and the rear starts to pick up grip suddenly
06:59and it pushes the front on towards the exit.
07:02Or you can have the complete opposite happening
07:04as Norris finally strings that lap together
07:06that he's been looking for.
07:08With low fuel, too many inconsistencies, I think he said.
07:12Still a bit of a struggle.
07:13But on that occasion, he managed to hook it up.
07:15This is Charles Leclerc through the S's.
07:17That looked like a Williams to the side.
07:19Well, I don't know who the **** that was.
07:21But anyway, so bad.
07:26They're staying in the middle.
07:30Another red flag, Jax.
07:31Sorry.
07:31Looks like fire because I don't see...
07:35Well, Gasly has slowed down.
07:38That's a big fire.
07:39Yeah, and that's...
07:41Yeah, that's right where Gasly was slowing down
07:45and you go into 130R.
07:47Yeah, but it's a good mark.
07:48It shows the driver was way out of the corner.
07:50If you Google what metals don't make a spark,
07:53it's basically non-ferrous metals.
07:55The old non-ferrous metals, Crofty.
07:57Even I remember that from my physics or chemistry lessons.
08:00I remember ferrous wheel.
08:02No, ferrous.
08:04Where's his Portoletto?
08:06You're OK, mate?
08:06Are you OK?
08:08I saved it.
08:09Something broke in the tyre.
08:11Oh, my ***** god.
08:13OK.
08:14He hit the ground.
08:16Yeah, he hit the ground.
08:17That's why it caught fire, actually, this time.
08:20It came from the tyre.
08:22Are we going to get a resumption?
08:24I don't think we are.
08:27They normally give a minute's notice for any resumption
08:31and we have gone past the one minute to go.
08:35So that's effectively session over
08:38and will not now be resumed.
08:41And that's for many reasons,
08:46but particularly the lack of a practice start on the grid.
08:49That is massively frustrating now for the team.
08:52But the wind has picked up a touch through that session.
08:56I wonder if it's going to get any stronger by the time we get to qualifying.
08:59And when it comes to qualifying and fastest over one lap,
09:02it's McLaren who've dominated all three sessions so far.
09:05This weekend, Oscar Piastri, fastest in FP2 yesterday,
09:10Lando Norris, quickest in FP1,
09:11and now on the Saturday practice as well.
09:14The margin, 26 milliseconds only.
09:18George Russell, really, really good lap from him in the Mercedes.
09:21Tenth off the pace.
09:22Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton,
09:24Alex Albon, all about half a second off the pace.
09:26Then you get to Pierre Gasly, Yuki Tsunoda and Isaac Hadja.
09:30About three tenths between Tsunoda and Verstappen
09:33in their single pace laps.
09:35Carlos Sainz just outside the top ten.
09:37Liam Lawson, if he finishes 12th in qualifying,
09:39will be an improvement on the first two races of the season
09:42when he was at Red Bull.
09:43Nico Hülkenberg, two and a half seconds or so off the pace.
09:46That's one down to 20.
09:48Who will be on pole?
09:49Qualifying's next.