First Max Verstappen watches in Bahrain, then he drives after his world championship rivals. One team is clearly faster than the rest in Formula 1 practice.
11.04.2025, 19:23
dpa
The McLaren duo dominated the first day of practice at the Formula 1 race in Bahrain. Australian Oscar Piastri set the fastest time of the day, with championship leader Lando Norris close behind in second place. The two McLaren drivers had a clear lead over the competition, led by George Russell in the Mercedes, during the practice laps in Sakhir. Defending champion Max Verstappen, winner in Japan the previous week, was unable to finish higher than seventh in the Red Bull.
Verstappen had taken a break during the opening practice session. The Dutchman left his company car in the hands of young driver Ayumu Iwasa from Japan and took a break in the team garage in shorts at 35 degrees. The reason for the time off for the defending champion was the rule that the teams have to give a young driver a chance in training on at least four race weekends of the season.
In Bahrain, six racing teams replaced a regular driver during the first practice session. Ferrari, Mercedes, Aston Martin, Williams and Haas also gave young drivers the chance to collect training kilometers. Verstappen's replacement, Iwasa, did not make it past penultimate place.
Clear favorite role for McLaren
All the regular drivers got back into the cockpit for the second practice session. In the dark and slightly cooler temperatures, conditions were similar to those expected in the fourth race of the season on Sunday (17:00/Sky).
Before the Grand Prix in the scree desert of Bahrain, Briton Norris leads the overall standings by one point ahead of Verstappen. Based on the impressions of the practice session, McLaren should be difficult to beat in Sakhir.
