Red Bull continued their recovery from a poor showing in Melbourne by finishing one-two in final practice for the Japanese Grand Prix ahead of Mercedes' George Russell.
The Silver Arrows themselves continued an impressive weekend so far with Lewis Hamilton just behind his team-mate in fourth and eager to carry their pace through to qualifying.
Ferrari seem to be struggling with both drivers languishing at the bottom end of the top ten and lacking the pace over one lap to compete with their rivals.
But it was a key decision made by the team which has angered one of their drivers.
Charles Leclerc vented his frustration at the end of the session after his team failed to time his last lap correctly, prompting him to say: "Honestly, I don't get it. What are we doing to stay in the garage?
"Oh my god. We have two laps, let's be on it, come on."
McLaren also do not seem as competitive as they were at Suzuka last year, where they secured a double podium – as both drivers sat outside the top five.