Lewis Hamilton sets the fastest time of the weekend so far while Felipe Massa was sneaking in second place.
Hamilton was 0.476 seconds quicker than Massa and 0.51secs clear of team-mate and title rival Nico Rosberg who had to settle for third.
Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso was fourth, 0.878secs behind Hamilton, and ahead of Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo and the sister Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen.
Williams’ Valtteri Bottas was seventh, ahead of the Toro Rossos drivers Daniil Kvyat and Jean-Eric Vergne.