Vergne sets the pace in final practice at Hockenheim

Carlin's Jean-Eric Vergne set the pace in free practice in Hockenheim this morning, before qualifying for the tenth round of the 2010 Cooper Tires British F3 Series gets underway this afternoon. Racing Steps Foundation driver James Calado was also on the pace and was one of the quickest drivers on track for the duration of the session. Carlin's Brazilian racers Adriano Buzaid and Lucas Foresti also set times within the top ten, going eighth and ninth quickest respectively.

Jean-Eric Vergne (FRA) Carlin Dallara Volkswagen Credit: British F3

In an incredibly competitive session which saw several drivers vying for the top spot, Vergne went P1 early on and was closely matched by team mate James Calado. As the 45 minute session drew to a close, Calado dropped to P3 but was confident that there was still more to come from his Volkswagen powered Carlin Dallara.

Meanwhile, Rupert Svendsen-Cook, who was one of Carlin's most consistent drivers last time out in Magny Cours was 13th. Following a loss of track time due to an accident in testing yesterday, Jazeman Jaafar was 15th at the end of today's 45 minute session.

Pace setter Vergne reflected, "Our final practice session went well. I'm happy and feel confident for qualifying, but as we've seen before outright speed in testing doesn't always mean maximum points at the end of the weekend. We're in good shape but there is still a lot of work to do."

Speaking about his final free practice session, Calado said, "I had a good session; I was consistently quick and it wasn't until the final stages that I dropped to P3. I made a small mistake on the second set of new tyres which might have cost us a little but, but we're definitely capable of going quicker. I think we went slightly the wrong way on one of our set up choices, but that's what testing it for and we have the chance to rectify that now before qualifying. I think there's a really good lap time in the car, so I'm looking forward to qualifying later today."

Qualifying for rounds 10 and 12 will take place at 15.45 later today.

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