Nine of the 10 teams chose the final race of the season to fulfil one of their mandatory young driver test days. Aston Martin reserve driver Felipe Drugovich and Ferrari’s Robert Shwartzman were the only rookies to make the top 10. Shwartzman was eighth, one place and 0.027secs slower than regular driver Carlos Sainz. Dane Frederik Vesti was 12th for Mercedes, ahead of Doohan in the Alpine, and Alfa’s back-up driver Theo Pourchaire. There is also some uncertainty over fourth place, with McLaren 11 points ahead of Aston Martin. Meanwhile, in the drivers’ championship, Sainz and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso are tied on 200 points in fourth and fifth places, just five points ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris, who is himself only seven ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.

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