Liam Lawson finished 11th in the final practice session for the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas, while Lewis Hamilton topped the timesheets for Ferrari.
The Kiwi made a strong start to the session, briefly leading the field on his opening flying lap before slipping down the order as drivers switched to soft tyres for their qualifying simulations.
Lawson was among the first to set a competitive time, posting a 1:36.420 on medium-compound tyres to go fastest, with several front-runners still in the pits.
Lando Norris initially went quicker with a 1:36.066 on soft tyres, but his lap was deleted for exceeding track limits, putting Lawson back on top.
Oscar Piastri then moved ahead with a 1:36.243, just 0.177 seconds quicker than the Kiwi, before Max Verstappen took over the top spot with a 1:35.702 on medium tyres.
Track limits proved troublesome for several drivers throughout the session, with Norris having a second lap deleted, while Charles Leclerc also lost his opening flying lap. With 38 minutes remaining, Hamilton went fastest on soft tyres with a 1:35.561, moving ahead of Verstappen.
Lawson was running fifth at this stage, with Racing Bulls teammate Arvid Lindblad sixth, around three tenths behind the Kiwi. Both were still on medium tyres, while several rivals had already switched to softs.
Isack Hadjar soon pushed both drivers down the order after moving into fourth on his first flying lap. Meanwhile, Verstappen was unhappy with his gearbox, questioning over team radio why the gear changes felt so different compared to the previous day.
Norris eventually completed a lap within track limits to move into third, while Leclerc had another time deleted before finally putting together a clean lap.
The Ferrari driver went fastest with a 1:35.127, with Kimi Antonelli moving into second, three tenths behind. Hamilton then made it a Ferrari one-two, sitting 0.289 seconds behind his teammate.
With 28 minutes remaining, Lawson and Lindblad returned to the track after spending time in the garage. Neither could improve on their previous times across two flying laps, and both headed back to the pits.
As the session entered its final 20 minutes, drivers began their qualifying simulations on soft tyres. Antonelli briefly went fastest with a 1:35.015, just over a tenth quicker than Leclerc, but his lap was deleted for exceeding track limits.
Verstappen then moved back to the top with a 1:35.061 before Hamilton went 0.168 seconds quicker to reclaim first place. Lawson also switched to soft tyres, improving his previous best by around four tenths on his first flying lap. However, with others also finding time, the Kiwi sat 11th.
Lindblad followed in 12th, just over a tenth behind Lawson, before both drivers returned to the garage. The Racing Bulls pair spent much of the session in the pits, completing relatively few laps compared to several rivals.
Both returned to the circuit with just over two minutes remaining for one final qualifying simulation, but neither could improve, leaving Lawson 11th and Lindblad 12th at the chequered flag.
Hamilton finished fastest ahead of Verstappen and Leclerc, with Antonelli fourth and George Russell fifth. Piastri finished sixth, followed by Nico Hulkenberg, Norris, Pierre Gasly and Hadjar, who completed the top ten.
After showing good early pace on the medium tyres, Lawson will be looking to find more time on the soft compound when qualifying gets underway.
Qualifying for the United States Grand Prix begins at 10:00am NZT, with the Grand Prix scheduled for 9:00am NZT tomorrow morning.
Header Image: Colin McMaster/LAT Images via Red Bull Content Pool
