Raikkonen tops final practice in Spa

Kimi Raikkonen loves Spa

Kimi Raikkonen put Ferrari at the top of the times during final practice for the Belgian Grand Prix, ahead of Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo and teammate Sebastian Vettel, as Mercedes again was sandbagging and focused on longer runs to win the race. They know topping practice sessions pays no points and tires are critical here. Having enough tires for the race will be key as teams are burning through the softer compounds quickly.

Less than a second covers the top nine, which features five teams – Ferrari, Red Bull, Williams, Mercedes and Force India. Haas and McLaren are incredibly closely matched just behind the lead pack.

Raikkonen, a four-time winner at Spa, posted a 1:47.974 late in the session to finish two tenths up on Ricciardo, and a further tenth clear of Vettel.

Both Ferrari drivers used two fresh sets of the Super Soft compound, however, while Ricciardo only used one, before switching to a long run.

Ricciardo's teammate, Max Verstappen, who topped Friday's FP2 session, was restricted to just two out-in laps, with a gearbox issue developing.

Lewis Hamilton spent the majority of his session working through longer runs, before a sole Super Soft effort elevated him to fifth, just behind Williams' Valtteri Bottas.

Hamilton took on further new power unit elements prior to the session, to boost his pool for the rest of the campaign, meaning he now faces a 15-place grid penalty Sunday.

Results