If practice, the first dry one, is anything to go on, the Chinese Grand Prix could be a competitive one to watch as Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel set the pace in the final session prior to qualifying.
| Pos | Driver | Car | Time | Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | 1m33.336s | – | 20 |
| 2 | Kimi Raikkonen | Ferrari | 1m33.389s | 0.053s | 19 |
| 3 | Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | 1m33.707s | 0.371s | 26 |
| 4 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1m33.879s | 0.543s | 25 |
| 5 | Felipe Massa | Williams/Mercedes | 1m34.773s | 1.437s | 23 |
| 6 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull/Renault | 1m34.946s | 1.610s | 20 |
| 7 | Daniel Ricciardo | Red Bull/Renault | 1m35.092s | 1.756s | 23 |
| 8 | Lance Stroll | Williams/Mercedes | 1m35.182s | 1.846s | 24 |
| 9 | Jolyon Palmer | Renault | 1m35.192s | 1.856s | 21 |
| 10 | Carlos Sainz | Toro Rosso/Renault | 1m35.223s | 1.887s | 24 |
| 11 | Nico Hulkenberg | Renault | 1m35.449s | 2.113s | 22 |
| 12 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas/Ferrari | 1m35.521s | 2.185s | 22 |
| 13 | Sergio Perez | Force India/Mercedes | 1m35.626s | 2.290s | 20 |
| 14 | Romain Grosjean | Haas/Ferrari | 1m35.680s | 2.344s | 22 |
| 15 | Daniil Kvyat | Toro Rosso/Renault | 1m35.804s | 2.468s | 23 |
| 16 | Esteban Ocon | Force India/Mercedes | 1m35.811s | 2.475s | 24 |
| 17 | Fernando Alonso | McLaren/Honda | 1m35.912s | 2.576s | 17 |
| 18 | Marcus Ericsson | Sauber/Ferrari | 1m36.063s | 2.727s | 25 |
| 19 | Stoffel Vandoorne | McLaren/Honda | 1m36.221s | 2.885s | 21 |
| 20 | Antonio Giovinazzi | Sauber/Ferrari | 1m36.705s | 3.369s | 24 |
Vettel was three tenths clear of the closest Mercedes driven by Valtteri Bottas and a full half second faster than Lewis Hamilton. Vettel’s teammate, Kimi Raikkonen, was just five hundredths of a second off the German’s pace.
Felipe Mass pipped the two Red Bulls driving his Williams to fifth with his rookie teammate, Lance Stroll, doing a handy job in 8th.
Helicopter rule
The FIA also have secured a police escort in case of inclement weather that might prevent the helicopter from flying. This escort is to insure that any person can reach a local hospital in 20 minutes or less…and FIA rule. It was this very rule that spoiled the previous practice sessions.
Photo by: www.kymillman.com/F1
the FIA made arrangements to have the special neurological equipment and specialists transferred to the nearer hospital, as the hospital furthest away agreed to lend their spare equipment and off duty specialists. so even transport by ambulance time will be reduced if they have to use land transport.