A late lap from Jake Hughes saw him top GP3 Series practice ahead of the sixth round of the year. Hughes will hoping to continue his momentum after winning the second race in Germany last time out.
The field was greeted into the second half of the season with blue skies and warm temperatures around the Spa-Francorchamps circuit. As practice got underway, it was championship contender Antonio Fuoco who set the pace.
Making his return to the series this weekend is Oscar Tunjo. The Colombian was straight up into second for Jenzer Motorsport as the session got underway, determined to prove he’d lost none of his speed after being absent for three rounds.
The times dropped off towards the as the track rubbered in before Alex Palou found some clear air. He went over a second quicker than Fuoco and heralded in a number of personal bests from his rivals.
While Palou and Fuoco had dominated the start of the session, it was Hughes who end practice on top after a stunning lap in the dying seconds launched him up the leader board. Matt Parry had been the first driver to drop into the 2min 06 second bracket coming home in second for Koiranen GP. While completing the top three was Kevin Jorg in the DAMS.
Behind them Steijn Schothorst was fourth. The Dutch driver had followed Parry up the order and once again completed a stunning Friday performance, while Tunjo rounded out the top five.
The ART Grand Prix drivers had a surprisingly poor session with the best positioning coming from Nyck de Vries in sixth, with team-mate Charles Leclerc just behind. Arthur Janosz was eighth for Trident with early session performer Fuoco in ninth. The top ten was eventually rounded out by series debutant Niko Kari who had briefly been fastest but failed to hold on to that position at the chequered flag for Koiranen GP.
GP3 – Spa-Francorchamps Practice Results
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