Hulkenberg marked his return to Sauber in fourth, from Antonelli and RB tester Ayumu Iwasa, who spent 2024 racing in Super Formula, as McLaren reserve Pato O’Ward – of IndyCar fame – pipped newly-promoted Alpine driver Jack Doohan to seventh position.
F2’s Aron was just a few thousandths down on Doohan in ninth via a composed rookie display, with former Alpine man Ocon, Williams youngster Luke Browning and Toyota-backed Haas test driver Ryo Hirakawa filling positions 10 to 12 on the timesheets.
READ MORE: 5 Winners and 5 Losers from Abu Dhabi – Who signed off their season in style?
Liam Lawson was the most active driver of the day as he racked up a whopping 159 laps of the venue, which came close to three race distances – the New Zealander slotting into 13th over Ferrari development driver Arthur Leclerc and Red Bull junior Isack Hadjar.
Abu Dhabi Grand Prix winner Lando Norris placed 16th after his morning run in the car, three positions up on team mate Oscar Piastri, who took over for the afternoon, with Tsunoda and Bortoleto slotting between them after their maiden runs for Red Bull and Sauber.
Jak Crawford, part of Aston Martin’s development programme, added to his F1 mileage in 20th, ahead of the team’s reserve Felipe Drugovich, Mercedes’ own reserve in Frederik Vesti and Ferrari development driver Antonio Fuoco – the latter two also only driving in the morning.
