Length: 5.793 km
Number of Laps: 53 (306.720Km)
Best Lap: R. Barrichello - 1'21''046 (2004, Ferrari)
Record Pole: R. Barrichello - 1'20''089 (2004, Ferrari)
2006 Pole: K. Raikkonen - 1'21''484 (Mclaren)
2006 Podium: M. Schumacher - K. Raikkonen - R. Kubica

Fernando Alonso beat McLaren teammate Lewis Hamilton to the fastest time in third practice at Monza, a session interrupted by an enormous accident for Kimi Raikkonen.

Raikkonen was on his fourth lap of the morning when his Ferrari snapped right under braking for the Ascari chicane. It glanced the wall before hitting the tyre barriers at high speed, head on.

The Finn was able to get out of the car unaided and was soon back in the Ferrari pit discussing the incident.

The session resumed after a 21-minute delay while the Ferrari was retrieved and the tyre wall reassembled.

The McLarens had been fastest prior to the accident, with Hamilton 0.097 seconds ahead of Alonso. They led the way out of the pit lane at the session restart and immediately improved their times, despite nearly making contact in the Curva Grande after an apparent misunderstanding on their out-laps.

Alonso moved to the head of the field with a 1:22.494, with Hamilton lapping 0.046 seconds slower.

They swiftly rejoined for a final run on soft tyres and both gained several tenths - Alonso improving to 1:22.054 and Hamilton to a 1:22.200.

Felipe Massa upheld Ferrari honour in third, 0.561 seconds off the pace, while Raikkonen tumbled to 20th following his crash.

The BMWs returned to their usual position immediately behind the title contenders, with Nick Heidfeld beating Robert Kubica to fourth place.

Williams' Nico Rosberg had briefly been fastest before the McLarens came out and he ended the session sixth, with teammate Alex Wurz confirming the team's potential in seventh.

Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen set identical times in eighth and ninth, with Mark Webber completing the top ten.

The Toro Rossos had both appeared in the top eight in the middle of the session before slipping back once the rest of the field switched to the soft compound. Sebastian Vettel ended the hour 13th, with Vitantonio Liuzzi falling back to 19th.

A slight modification was made to the new run-off area at the Roggia chicane before this session, with an extra piece added to the kerbing to prevent drivers cutting the corner excessively. This caught Ralf Schumacher out on his first run, as the Toyota hit the new bump too vigorously and was tipped into a spin.