Bahrain GP: first practice, first impressions
Hamilton is fastest in FP1 with his teammate Roberg behind him chased by Ferrari's Alonso.
The Mercedes duo claimed the first two spots of the time sheets again. Is anyone surprised? A few braking mistakes did not prevent Lewis Hamilton from being 0.231 faster than his teammate Nico Rosberg who did a lap of 1:37.733.
Force India should be proud of Nico Hulkenberg, who showed great pace and secured 4th row. Sergio Perez sits in P9.
Jenson Button was just about half a second slower than the German driver and did a lap of 1:38.636. Kimi Raikkonen is separating the two McLarens on the times list.
Felipe Nasr showed competitive performance in his first FP1 with Williams Martini Racing - just few tenths slower than his countryman - Massa.
Lotus showed a very good practice with a total of 55 laps done, no failures, no issues - a good sign for a struggling team from the early mid-season tests. But with a huge lack of pace, even Jules Bianchi in the Marussia was able to post a time only a tenth slower than Pastor Maldonado, the fastest of Lotus' drivers in this session.
Looks like Red Bull Racing's focus was to gather data for setups and not posting fast lap times. It's hot in Bahrain, and tire degradation is a big issue of the race. Their drivers posted 10th and 14th result, by Vettel and Ricciardo respectively. I guess the next session will show us the real pace of RB10 at Bahrain.
The race track finally got some grip after this session and the sand on the circuit is not such a problem now, so let's wait for the next practice, the temperatures will be a little lower as the sun will begin to fade away going beyond the horizon.
Share Or Save This Story
Verstappen impressed with turbo V6 power
Fernando Alonso tops rain-marred FP2 at Monaco
Hamilton fastest in P1 with Rosberg and Ricciardo behind in Monte Carlo
Jenson Button identifies key reason behind Lewis Hamilton's Ferrari resurgence
Jenson Button gives verdict on Max Verstappen Red Bull exit: "Frustrated with the situation"
Jenson Button names key figure behind Kimi Antonelli's stunning Mercedes form
Ferrari and Peugeot begin work on updated hypercars for 2027 WEC
Ferrari surprised by "spicy" Red Bull strategy that yielded Max Verstappen second in Hungary
Why Charles Leclerc’s battle of the brakes has left him trailing Lewis Hamilton
Kyle Larson's family will determine his retirement and post-retirement schedule
Why Hendrick Motorsports believes in the development of Corey Day
“This is not our history” - Inside the Race debates purpose of Brickyard 400
Why Sami Pajari believes Estonia win won’t make Rally Finland “any easier”
Lando Norris and Max Verstappen overdelivered in Hungary - and that's symbolic of their F1 2026 seasons
Where to next after the Bahraysian Grand Prix?
How Lando Norris shrugged off his first-lap error to deliver on McLaren's Hungarian GP pace
When plucky private entrants could afford to go GP racing, and how F1 changed with the rise of commercialisation
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments