Russell leads Hamilton & Norris in wet final practice at Silverstone · RaceFans

Austrian Grand Prix winner George Russell was fastest of all in a wet final practice session at Silverstone, though his Mercedes team mate Lewis Hamilton was close behind.

After a final hour of free running before qualifying ran entirely on intermediate tyres, Mercedes were fastest of all with Russell’s best time less than a tenth quicker than his team mate.

Lando Norris was third fastest, meaning British drivers claimed the top three places at their home track. Carlos Sainz Jnr took fourth ahead of Max Verstappen.

Relentless rain from the end of Friday practice all the way through Saturday morning had forced the postponement of the planned Formula 3 sprint race, but the rain had ended by the time the green light appeared at the end of pit lane for the start of the session. The water levels on track were light enough for drivers to only need intermediates tyres as they headed out on track for the first time.

The lack of grip was demonstrated when Verstappen had a spin on his first lap out of the pits exiting Brooklands, but after a full 360-degree rotation he was able to continue on his way. Pierre Gasly was not so fortunate, as he skidded off track into Vale and found the gravel trap, prompting the session to be halted with a red flag.

As drivers returned to their garages, several were eager to keep heat into their tyres before they were wrapped up into their blankets. Daniel Ricciardo began weaving aggressively in the pit lane as he passed several team crews out accepting their returning cars. The stewards took notice of the RB driver’s tyre warming behaviour in the pit lane and announced they would investigate him for a potential pit lane infringement after the session.

After brief, five-minute delay, the session resumed. However, grip was still at a premium, with Valtteri Bottas having a very slow speed spin at The Loop, while Norris was forced to run off at the first corner Abbey after catching a slide.

With only a small amount of rain still falling over the circuit, times began gradually getting faster as time progressed. Eventually, the two Mercedes drivers, Russell and Hamilton, went quickest of all with near-identical lap times of 1’37.5 as several drivers ran long stints on the intermediate tyres to gauge their longevity.

With around 20 minutes remaining, the rain began to increase in intensity. Several drivers returned to the pit lane, but both Mercedes, RBs and Saubers remained out on the track along with Sergio Perez, Kevin…