Red Bull appeared the team to beat after the first practice sessions for the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, with praise coming from rivals George Russell and Charles Leclerc. Ferrari's Leclerc topped the timesheets by just 0.099 seconds over Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar, who was second fastest, while Max Verstappen ended the day fourth but showed promising underlying pace.
Leclerc described the session as difficult due to tricky, slippery track conditions, saying the situation was very close between the top teams. “The track was quite dirty and very slippery so things will evolve and change a lot from today until tomorrow and we have to be on the good side of that anticipating that in the best possible way,” he said. Despite topping the times, Leclerc acknowledged that Red Bull looked stronger overall. “I felt quite good with the car but I still feel like the Red Bull is standing out this weekend so far,” he added.
Verstappen chose not to complete a qualifying simulation on the soft tyre, prioritising race preparation because of forecasted rain. He described his day as a “decent start” and “positive.” Leclerc also noted that Hadjar had made mistakes on the last part of his lap and Verstappen had not run on the soft tyre, suggesting the timing sheets could be misleading. “I don’t think we are the most competitive and also the Mercedes is a bit difficult to understand. I’m sure once Mercedes put everything together they will be very strong. Normally when they put something on the car it works,” Leclerc said.
Mercedes brought a major upgrade to their car, their first since last June’s Canadian Grand Prix, but their drivers George Russell and Kimi Antonelli were seventh and eighth fastest. Russell said the upgrade delivered more downforce in some corners but tyre overheating and degradation remained a bigger issue. “So we just need to get on top of that overnight. That’s more of a set-up rather than the upgrade itself and go from there,” Russell explained.
On whether he could challenge for pole position, Russell was cautious but acknowledged the strength of Red Bull and McLaren. “Currently, Verstappen looks very fast and the race pace of the McLaren looked very quick but never say never,” he said. Russell trails his Mercedes teammate Antonelli by 66 points in the championship after winning in Azerbaijan last weekend.
Verstappen’s race simulation runs also positioned Red Bull as a strong contender when tyre wear and stint length were considered. The top four teams—Red Bull, Ferrari, McLaren, and Mercedes—remained closely matched after the day’s sessions, which took place on an abrasive track last used for F1 in 2017, with tropical temperatures adding to the challenge.
Liam Lawson of Racing Bulls and Alpine’s Pierre Gasly rounded out the top 10. Meanwhile, three drivers face grid penalties ahead of qualifying. Hadjar will drop five places for exceeding the allowed number of engine components. Arvid Lindblad and Franco Colapinto will start at the back, with Lindblad carrying engine penalties and Colapinto serving a combined 15-place penalty — 10 places for engine changes plus five for causing a crash at last weekend’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix restart.
F1’s return to this Malaysian circuit comes after the cancellations of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabia races earlier in the year due to the war in the Middle East. Bahrain secured the race’s relocation through negotiations by Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. The Bahrain Grand Prix trophy will be awarded as usual, but rosewater will replace champagne for the podium celebrations. Several Bahrain-related activities are taking place at the track, marking the event’s unique position on this year’s calendar.
According to BBC Sports.