SAHIR, Bahrain. Reigning champion Max Verstappen ended the first day of the new F1 season as the fastest driver, narrowly beating Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc to set the fastest time in Friday practice.
Verstappen’s Red Bull completed the Bahrain International Circuit in 1:31.936, running 0.087s faster than Leclerc, with both drivers using soft compound tires to put in their fastest laps.
Red Bull and Ferrari looked like two teams to win during pre-season testing, and Verstappen’s lap was 0.593 seconds faster than Mercedes’ best time set by George Russell in fourth place.
Verstappen’s advantage was clear throughout the lap, winning lap times over the Ferraris in Turns 7 and 13, and also making significant progress over the Mercedes in Turn 1.
Red Bull’s speed over longer distances, used to simulate how the car would react to a race with heavy fuel, showed Verstappen could break out of the pack on Sunday if he leads at the end of the first lap. His average 13-lap lap time was a full second faster than Carlos Sainz’s comparable Ferrari run, while Leclerc’s heavy-fuel data was too limited to make a clear comparison.
Mercedes’ struggles from pre-season testing escalated into the first two practices in Bahrain, with the car bouncing on the straights as it continued to suffer from a phenomenon known as guinea pig.
The guinea pig occurs when the bottom of the car is moving too close to the ground, disrupting the airflow underneath and causing underfloor aerodynamics to stall and loss of downforce. When this happens, the car rises on its suspension, causing the under-floor aerodynamics to work again, which in turn causes the car to lower, starting the bouncing cycle again.
On Friday, Mercedes unveiled a re-profiled underbody on its car that they hoped would solve the problem, combined with rods connecting the floor and upper body to prevent the floor from bending.
Although the dolphin was not as dramatic as in testing, the Mercedes still lacked performance compared to its main rivals and Russell had to break away at the entrance to turn 14 on his fastest lap to solve the problem.
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton finished ninth fastest in the Mercedes, complaining of both bouncing and braking problems on his fastest lap. His car’s drag reduction system also failed on the main straight on his fastest lap, costing him 0.6 seconds of lap time, which explains his fall behind teammate Russell.
Judging by Russell’s lap times, the Mercedes was the third fastest car, with the Alpine-led Fernando Alonso chasing it another 0.35 seconds behind. However, the Alpine’s long-distance speed looked comparable to Mercedes and McLaren.
“We’re far away, we’re not bluffing like people think,” Hamilton said. “It is what it is.
“We will work hard and do our best. I’m just a realist. We’re not going to race to win here.
Red Bull is far, far ahead. He’s ahead of us by about eight to nine tenths, and the Ferrari is probably ahead of us by about half a second, six tenths. them.”
McLaren failed to impress on the timesheets, but after missing so many pre-season tests last week due to a brake cooling problem, the team came up with a different run plan for rival teams to make up for it.
Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas, Red Bull co-driver Sergio Pérez and Haas driver Mick Schumacher also looked competitive for one lap as the F1 midfield looks close to at least seven teams.
Just over a second separated Alonso in fifth and Sebastian Vettel’s replacement at Aston Martin, Nico Hulkenberg, in 17th, suggesting there would be little difference between being eliminated in the first part of qualifying and reaching the top ten.