Spa FP3: Surprise as Raikkonen sets the pace

Kimi Raikkonen surprised the Formula 1 paddock as he set the set the pace for Ferrari in the third and final practice session for Belgian Grand Prix.

The Finn, four-time winner at Spa-Francorchamps - venue of his last victory for Ferrari in 2009 - lapped the track in 1:47.974 on a hot and sweltering morning in the Ardennes.

Australian Daniel Ricciardo carried over Red Bull’s strong form from Friday’s practice sessions to take second, 0.215 seconds behind.

Four-times world champion Sebastian Vettel was third, with Ferrari, which struggled in the uncharacteristically hot temperatures on Friday, looking more competitive ahead of qualifying.

Reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton, who took on a third fresh power unit ahead of the hour-long session, was fifth.

The Briton is set to start Sunday’s race dead last after being hit with a cumulative 55-place grid penalty and, like Friday, spent most of the session on refining his Mercedes’ long-run pace.

Like team-mate Nico Rosberg, who was seventh, Hamilton went out for a final blast on the fastest super-soft tyres in the dying minutes of the session.

Dutchman Max Verstappen, for whom this race is the closest he has to a home event, was only able to drive two laps in front of his legions of orange-clad supporters without setting a time thanks to a suspected sensor problem on his Red Bull.