Monza, Italy: Formula One world champion Sebastian Vettel led a Red Bull one-two in the final practice session for the Italian Grand Prix on Saturday.
The 24-year-old German, who leads Australian teammate Mark Webber by 92 points in the standings with seven races remaining, roared around the Monza circuit in bright sunshine with a best lap of 1 minute 23.170 seconds. Webber was 0.364 slower on a morning that made a mockery of Red Bull's assertions that the fastest track on the calendar would be the worst of the season for their car.
Ferrari's Felipe Massa was third quickest in the final practice session in Europe this season. McLaren's Lewis Hamilton, the 2008 world champion who set the fastest time in Friday's practice, was fourth on the timesheets and more than half a second slower than championship leader Vettel. Teammate Jenson Button was fifth, followed by the Mercedes of Nico Rosberg and seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher.
Ferrari's Fernando Alonso, last year's winner from pole, was eighth quickest.
Red Bull have started all 12 races so far this season on pole position and Vettel and Webber, who finished one-two in the last race in Belgium, looked well-placed to continue that run in qualifying later at Monza.
Renault's Russian driver Vitaly Petrov took part in practice wearing a black helmet in a mark of condolence after the entire squad of top ice hockey club Lokomotiv Yaroslavl were killed in a plane crash that killed 43 people on Wednesday.
"I want to offer my greatest condolences to all the families and friends of victims of this awful catastrophe," he said on the Renault website. "It doesn't matter which team you support, the whole of Russia is shocked by what has happened.
"I don't understand how things like that could have happened because after recent catastrophes, aviation control was doubled."
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