formula 1
Mercedes strong in the desert: Hamilton with the best time of the day
Turned the fastest lap in the second free practice session in Bahrain: Lewis Hamilton. photo
© Hasan Bratic/dpa
Lewis Hamilton in first place. The record world champion sets the fastest lap in Bahrain. Behind: teammate George Russell. Formula 1 defending champion Max Verstappen curses.
Hamilton’s British compatriot and teammate George Russell confirmed the strong impression of the new Mercedes in second place in the one-hour session.
Three-time world champion and defending champion Max Verstappen also stumbled with the new Red Bull at qualifying and race time. The 26-year-old Dutchman had to admit defeat again, at least in the fight for the best time on one lap. As in the first session, the three-time champion in the Red Bull didn’t get past sixth place. And just like in the afternoon, Verstappen complained and cursed about the gearshift of the new RB20.
Hülkenberg in seventh place
The two-time world champion Fernando Alonso came third in an Aston Martin. The 42-year-old was only eight hundredths of a second slower than Russell. Hamilton was almost three tenths of a second away. Fourth place went to Carlos Sainz, who will have to vacate his cockpit at Ferrari for Hamilton after this season. Nico Hülkenberg, once again the only regular German driver this year, finished seventh in the Haas.
How meaningful the results are remains to be seen. The qualification takes place on the course in the Sakhir desert this Friday (5 p.m. CET), the race takes place on Saturday (4 p.m. CET/Sky and RTL). The Grand Prix will also start a week later in Saudi Arabia on Saturday. The reason for this is the upcoming Islamic fasting month of Ramadan, which begins on March 10th. There must be a week between races.