Ferrari continued to show strong pace at the Australian Grand Prix as Charles Leclerc topped the final practice session ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in second and team-mate Carlos Sainz in third.

Just under two tenths of a second separated the top five, sounding the potential for an almighty pole position battle between Ferrari, Red Bull and possibly even Mercedes too as Lewis Hamilton improved on Saturday morning.

Sainz shockingly set his best time with the medium tyre, as the grid battles with an overheating soft tyre which is tricky to manage for a whole lap.

It could mean that some teams opt to use the medium in Q3 as they harder Pirelli rubber manages to hold on throughout the entire lap through Albert Park.

READ MORE: F1 team confirm just ONE car will race Australian Grand Prix

F1 FP3 Results: Australian Grand Prix 2024
Here are the timesheets from Saturday afternoon in Melbourne:

1. Charles Leclerc [Ferrari] – 1:16:714sec
2. Max Verstappen [Red Bull] – +0.020sec
3. Carlos Sainz [Ferrari] – +0.077sec
4. Lewis Hamilton [Mercedes] – +0.092sec
5. George Russell [Mercedes] – +0.172sec
6. Fernando Alonso [Aston Martin] – +0.283sec
7. Sergio Perez [Red Bull] – +0.300sec
8. Oscar Piastri [McLaren] – +0.373sec
9. Lance Stroll [Aston Martin] – +0.627sec
10. Lando Norris [McLaren] – +0.776sec
11. Yuki Tsunoda [VCARB] – +0.959sec
12. Valtteri Bottas [Kick Sauber] – +1.038sec
13. Alex Albon [Williams] – +1.045sec
14. Zhou Guanyu [Kick Sauber] – +1.162sec
15. Esteban Ocon [Alpine] – +1.206sec
16. Nico Hulkenberg [Haas] – +1.227sec
17. Kevin Magnussen [Haas] – +1.247sec
18. Daniel Ricciardo [VCARB] – +1.249sec
19. Pierre Gasly [Alpine] – +1.676sec
20. Logan Sargeant [Williams] – DNP

Who is the current F1 world champion?
The imperious Max Verstappen is the current reigning Formula 1 champion, having won three consecutive titles between 2021 and 2023.