What the teams said – Friday in Bahrain

McLaren

Norris set the pace in the opening session, while Piastri found himself down the order after a scruffy lap on the softs where he ran wide through the final corner. But the Australian more than made up for that with an exceptionally fast lap in the evening session, beating his team mate by a tenth and a half. The two McLaren drivers looked the class of the field – and therefore tomorrow is shaping up for an epic intra-team fight all the way in Qualifying.

Lando Norris - FP1: 1:33.204, P1; FP2: 1:30.659, P2

“A reasonable day for the team. Some tricky conditions, very different to the test, so it’s about understanding the car in the heat. The team have worked hard all day, and we now have plenty of things to focus on tomorrow to make sure we’re in a strong position for Qualifying.”

Oscar Piastri - FP1: 1:34.508, P10; FP2: 1:30.505, P1

“Friday done. Pretty tricky conditions out there today, especially in FP1, but I think it’s been a good day overall. The pace looked strong in FP2, and we’ve learned a lot. We’ll have a look at what went well and what we can do better before turning our attention to Qualifying tomorrow afternoon.”

Andrea Stella, Team Principal

“We enjoyed a reasonable first day here in Bahrain, where we were able to complete our run plans as intended. This circuit offers an interesting challenge when it comes to tyre degradation, and we have gathered important data in this area.

“While our FP2 times looked encouraging, we know we still have some work to do to convert this into a strong Qualifying position tomorrow, which in turn will be critical when it comes to giving us opportunities on Sunday.

“As always, we will analyse the data overnight, see where we can make improvements and put ourselves in the best possible position to fight during Qualifying.”

Mercedes

Mercedes had a difficult time of it in FP1, with Antonelli pulling back into the pits after just one run with an issue. That turned out to be a water pressure problem that kept him in the garage for the rest of the session, meaning their only meaningful data was gathered by rookie Vesti. Roll on FP2, and Russell showed some decent pace as he found himself ahead of the Ferraris and Red Bulls, with Antonelli not too much further back. They opted to only run soft tyres, with a view to saving the harder compounds for race day.

George Russell - FP2: 1:31.032, P3

"It [FP2] was OK. We expected McLaren to be a step ahead here and we saw that today. They were a strongest in the middle sector where the tyres are overheating, so we know we’ve got a bit of work to do if we want to challenge them. I think we’re in position fighting for the next best behind them in all honesty.

"I think it’s going to be close between ourselves, Ferrari and the Red Bulls. It is hard to say with confidence, but we saw both teams performing strongly at different points throughout the day. I definitely feel, unlike the last three races, this won’t be dominated by Qualifying – this weekend is going to be dominated by race pace and by tyre degradation. Of course, you want to have a good Qualifying, but the race is where the action will be."

Kimi Antonelli - FP1: 1:38.051, P20; FP2: 1:31.227, P5

"FP1 was obviously quote short. Unfortunately, I had a water leak on the car, so I had to stop and couldn’t drive for the rest of the session. That was a shame because you don’t want to miss out on laps. FP2 was quite positive though. The single lap was quite good, even though I made a big mistake in sector one, and overall I felt pretty good in the car. The long run was quite tricky – completely different to what we had in testing, so I had to adapt, but overall, despite the issue in FP1, it was a positive day.

"Being at a track that I know definitely helped get me up to speed more quickly today. I felt straightaway in FP2 that I had confidence with the car and despite the track being different to when I’ve driven here previously, I had the confidence to be able to push. McLaren still seem to be the favourite but I think we should be fighting for the top five in tomorrow’s Qualifying. We can definitely take the fight to the Red Bulls and Ferrari, but let’s wait and see what Saturday brings."

Frederik Vesti - FP1: 1:35.325, P18

"What a day it’s been. Yesterday was awesome to be back in the paddock and working with the team preparing for the day today. I was really happy to be back in the car – it felt really good to challenge myself and to push to the limit. Obviously spending so much time in the simulator, it’s just really nice to get time in the real car, learning more about the tyres and the W16 itself.

"As a racing driver, feeling that energy through the body is something you miss a lot when you’re in the simulator. I want to thank Mercedes for giving me the opportunity again to run in FP1 and continue my journey. My motivation is very high and I will continue to push. For now, it’s back to Brackley, back to work with the team there and correlate what I’ve learned today in the simulator. We will continue pushing towards even better results and race wins."

Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director

"We had Fred Vesti in the car for FP1 and he did a great job for us. The programme was designed for our learning rather than setting headline times but when we correct for the Medium compound and fuel, the times were impressive considering that it was his first time in the W16. Unfortunately, we lost Kimi's car early in the session with a water leak. We were able to quickly identify the issue and resolved it for FP2 although it was a shame to lose the running.

"The cooler conditions of the evening session meant the grip was higher and the car was more together. We managed a good programme with both drivers, electing to do two Soft tyres in the conditions more relevant to Qualifying. There's plenty still to work on. The track is much hotter than the test so keeping tyres in the window is more difficult both on single lap and long run but it's a decent baseline to work from and the car is at least quite consistent in its behaviour around the lap. As we've seen at the recent races, it's quite tight. McLaren look strong here but we expected that after testing but hopefully we can get ourselves into the podium fight."

Ferrari

Beganovic got his first taste of an F1 car in FP1 in place of Leclerc. That left Hamilton gathering the only data on the new floor that was fitted to his car, but the seven-time World Champion was unhappy with the level of grip out there. He didn’t sound too pleased on multiple occasions in the first hour, but was much quieter in FP2. Both Ferraris opted to run two sets of softs to make the most of the representative conditions, but Leclerc was half a second back and Hamilton over a second adrift. That leaves plenty of work to do for Ferrari overnight.

Charles Leclerc - FP2: 1:31.045, P4

"The temperatures are so much higher than during testing here, so FP2 was tricky. The feeling in the car is completely different and we have to adjust the car to suit it. We will work on that tonight and try to optimise the setup. I’m trying to push in a direction that will allow me to extract the most out of the car for my driving style. With our competitors ahead of us by quite a bit, I’m motivated to close that gap as soon as possible.

"We have to focus on maximising the potential of our car. I think we can still find some performance ahead of qualifying and we will do everything to extract the most from our upgrade. Let’s see where that will place us tomorrow."

Lewis Hamilton - FP1: 1:33.800, P3; FP2: 1:31.576, P8

"FP1 was quite tricky — the heat made it difficult to find grip, so it wasn’t the most representative session for us.

"FP2 was a step forward. The lap on softs was looking strong, but I went a bit deep into the final corner and lost some time there. Our race runs were solid, but others seem competitive in all conditions, so we’ll be working hard overnight to close the gap."

Dino Beganovic - FP1: 1:35.055, P14

"Making my first official Formula 1 appearance in a Ferrari is a real privilege and I will remember this day in Bahrain forever. I really had an amazing time, I enjoyed every moment. We completed our plan with no issues and I hope it contributed to helping the team. I want to thank Charles, the team and the Scuderia Ferrari Driver Academy for this amazing opportunity. I will now focus on my Formula 2 campaign and will do my best to maximise the learnings from today."

Red Bull

Iwasa was in Verstappen’s cockpit in FP1, leaving the Dutchman an interested spectator for the first session. While the rookie had a quiet time of it, the same could not be said for Tsunoda. He found himself blocked in the pit lane by Albon, but instead of braking opted to overtake – something the stewards had a look at. He got away with a reprimand but then could not extract much pace from the car at all under the lights and wound up way down the order. Verstappen did not fare much better, complaining about braking as he found himself over eight tenths off the lead McLaren.

Max Verstappen - FP2: 1:31.330, P7

“It was a more difficult session today although it was a shorter day for me, I had limiting running time as Ayumu was in the car for FP1. It took a few laps to get into it, the balance wasn't too bad, but we were struggling a lot with the grip. As a Team we had a bit of a different approach to our Friday than our competitors, but the gap is quite big at the moment. We have quite a bit of work to do also in the long run and we're hoping that tomorrow is more fun.”

Yuki Tsunoda - FP1: 1:34.484, P9; FP2: 1:32.024, P18

“Today was a bit of learning, we ran different set-up across the cars to see what the performance looked like. But overall, I would say the second session was a bit messy for me, with being able to put it together. There were also some communication struggles on radio between my race engineer and me, that’s all just part of the learning process and understanding one another properly, it’s only the fifth session together since I jumped in the car. For now, there is some struggling, but at the same time a lot will come from cleaner communication. I think if we can clean up the communication then it’ll make operational things a lot smoother, warm-up, the switches etc. and that would bring lap times. Maybe Woody and I need to go out tonight and get to know each other, with my Japanese English and his Scottish English! It would be a fun night. It’s hard to tell where we are at the moment, I feel there is potential, but it has been hard to extract it. It wasn’t the finest Friday ever, I hope the rest of the weekend is better, I have to be better. I am still feeling optimistic and I am sure we will change a lot of things overnight.”

Ayumu Iwasa - FP1: 1:35.475, P19

“It was a really great experience to get to drive the RB21 in Bahrain, a big thank you to the Team for the opportunity. It was a bit tricky with the session I had, we had an aero test at the beginning of the session, so I didn't do many laps today, but I was focused on trying to do my best and to not make many mistakes. Towards the end of the session, I was feeling more comfortable in the car and was able to provide more feedback on the radio. It has been really helpful to work with GP and the engineering team, to hear their feedback on my performance and to work with them. I had tested previously in the VCARB car, so it was great to have another opportunity to drive in an F1 car. It was overall a new and nice experience in the car and with the Team and will help prepare myself for hopefully more opportunities in the future.”

Racing Bulls

Lawson looked quick from the off in Bahrain, beating his team mate in the opening session as he seemed far more comfortable in the car than he did in Japan. Hadjar had one big lock up in FP1, but apart from that seemed to be there or thereabouts. The Frenchman was the more impressive in FP2 however, winding up solidly in the top 10 and quicker than both Hamilton and Verstappen. Lawson was a few places further back, via a couple of lock ups on a night where track grip was at a premium.

Isack Hadjar - FP1: 1:34.667, P12; FP2: 1:31.238, P6

“We had a good FP2 today, especially after how hot the track was during FP1, where we were not able to gather any reliable information. FP2 made much more sense and we looked strong in one-lap pace. Generally, we had a good feeling in the car, but there’s still room for improvement, so a lot to look forward to for tomorrow. I’m optimistic, as I know I’m going to put the work in tonight. It’s not surprising that all the gaps are really close in the midfield; we’re in the mix and I know it’s going to be about details for tomorrow’s Qualifying.”

Liam Lawson - FP1: 1:34.397, P8; FP2: 1:31.706, P12

"FP2 was more tricky for us weirdly because of the track conditions in FP1 making it a difficult session. The balance in FP2 went away from us a little bit, but in general I think the car is in a good place, it's just fine tuning. Tomorrow we have a session in the day, which isn't going to help us for Quali, but we'll be taking what we can from this session ahead of then. I made a pretty big mistake in FP2 which dropped me down, so for all of us it's important to nail the lap, otherwise it's very costly here. Right now in Formula One, the difference between a really good lap and a bad lap can completely change your position so it puts pressure on us out on track."

Alan Permane, Racing Director

“An interesting day, as Fridays always are here in Bahrain. We’ve got two distinct and different sets of conditions to face in the practice sessions. FP1 is very hot and not representative of what we will face in Qualifying and the race; today we saw track temperatures rise to nearly 50 degrees on track. FP2 is much cooler, making it tricky to set the cars up because the grip is so different between both sessions. Tomorrow we will face the same thing with FP3 being hotter and then it being cooler under the lights for Qualifying. We had a very normal day though, we’ve done our homework and we’ve got a decent balance on the cars. Isack was very happy with his car, with Liam still having a little work to do to, but it’s not a true reflection on where he can be. We’re optimistic we can get the maximum out of the cars tomorrow and have them close to each other and well positioned for the race.”

Williams

Albon had an eventful first hour of running in Bahrain, as the Thai driver found himself involved in a couple of incidents. He was called to the stewards both for an unsafe release in the pit lane and for impeding his team mate out on track, Browning forced into avoiding action whilst on a fast lap. In between those, Albon looked quick though – on both the medium and the soft tyre. Williams were handed just a fine in the end, and once that was taken care of they could focus on the track action again. FP2 saw both cars evenly matched and on the cusp of the top 10, so they need to squeeze a few more tenths out tomorrow to make sure they make Q3.

Alex Albon - FP1: 1:33.928, P4; FP2: 1:31.696, P11

"We weren’t quite as competitive today as we were when we were here for pre-season testing, and we fell back a little bit in the heat. The issues we’re seeing were expected though and some balance issues have been exposed. We only seem to have them at this track, it’s interesting. We know it’s going to be close here, but the good thing is, it’s nothing major that needs fixing; the car feels good."

Carlos Sainz - FP2: 1:31.623, P10

"After skipping FP1 we got up to speed pretty quickly in the short run, and then in the long run we struggled with some car balance issues and tyres, but we’ll do some work tonight to see if we can sort them. The track and the car feel completely different to when we were here for testing, so we need to make a few adjustments to make sure that we hit the sweet spot tomorrow."

Luke Browning - FP1: 1:34.885, P13

"Coming from F2 Practice to F1 Practice was tough as it was such a big step up! Saying that, it was probably harder the other way - stepping back to F2. It’s always nicer to go from F2 to F1, to push everything up. I think we did a good job out there; I really enjoyed it. I was in an F1 car in Monza last week for our test, so it was great to be able to apply everything I learned then to this weekend. Getting more mileage in was a big help. Big thanks to Williams for the opportunity!"

Alpine

Alpine impressed in FP1, with both drivers winding up in the top 10. Gasly was second, the only car to get within half a second of Norris as the Frenchman delivered a very tidy lap. But their pace faded once the sun set in Bahrain, with Doohan proving the faster of the two in FP2. He was 14th, Gasly 17th with Alpine’s one-lap pace still a little hit and miss this season. The good news was that Gasly looked quick on the hard tyre when he was running race simulations, which bodes well for Sunday.

Pierre Gasly - FP1: 1:33.442, P2; FP2: 1:31.947, P17

“The conditions here in Bahrain are very different now compared to pre-season testing. In Free Practice 1 it was extremely hot and it was just low grip all session. It was quite nice to be second on the leaderboard even if it was not a representative session for various reasons. In Free Practice 2, the Hard tyre at the start felt okay but we just seemed to struggle on the Soft tyre. It’s important we understand that compound a bit better and see how we can optimise it over one lap. The midfield is extremely tight again and I remain optimistic that we can improve ahead of tomorrow. We will do our homework tonight and make sure we get it right tomorrow evening.”

Jack Doohan - FP1: 1:34.396, P7; FP2: 1:31.788, P14

“It’s been a solid day’s Practice in Bahrain. We struggled a little bit in Free Practice 1 and I still was not completely happy in Free Practice 2. The field is so close, two tenths of a second splits a number of cars, so every detail will count for a lot especially in a tight fight for Q3. We will keep our heads down and keep working hard to find some improvements from today. There will be plenty of useful data for us to run through from this evening’s session both on low and high fuel and across all three compounds. Tomorrow, Free Practice 3 will be hot like we had in the first session today. It will be all about refining some details, understanding the tyres and maximising what we have when it counts.”

Haas

Bearman sat out in the opening session for Hirakawa, who drove for Haas after signing a new deal to become the team’s official reserve driver. The Japanese racer did well, as did Ocon who wound up an impressive fifth in FP1. But Bearman did not waste any time getting going in the second session, putting his VF-25 into the top 10 on the soft tyre. He comfortably out-paced his more experienced team mate once again, a trend that looks to have continued from Japan.

Esteban Ocon – FP1: 1:34.184, P5; FP2: 1:31.870, P16

"It was a difficult session and not really much to read from FP1 but a lot more came from FP2, so we’ll gather more data after today. It was hard for us as we’re still struggling, since Suzuka, with a little bouncing in the car. We’re lacking some top-speed as well, but we’ll keep working to find this for tomorrow. As a team we’re trying our best to figure it out, but at the moment it’s similar to Suzuka.”

Oliver Bearman - FP2: 1:31.584, P9

“It was a good session, although I’m slightly struggling to get a good feeling with the car; I had some brake issues I was dealing with for the whole session. It still looks like on low-fuel we’re pretty competitive and we tried to run long with the soft tyre, so we’ll see what the data says but I’m pretty happy with today even though I got one session in. I definitely think the new floor is working as expected, which is great, as the team pushed it forward and brought it very quickly. I’m proud of them for that and it looks like we can run the car pretty aggressively now which is great for performance, so hopefully we can keep up the good performance.”

Ryo Hirakawa - FP1: 1:35.261, P17

“Having done the post-season test with the team last year was helpful, I already knew the team, so I’ve settled in quickly again. It was quite a different experience from last week as the track temp was very high, so it was quite a tricky session for me. To be honest, I didn’t have time to completely adapt to the car, which was a shame, but still I had a good feeling and gave my feedback to the team. The car is going in a good direction and I’ve got more sessions coming, so I can prepare better.”

Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal

“Ryo was in the car for the first time with us in FP1, I think he struggled a little bit in terms of braking, but other than that I think he’s done a very good job. His feedback was good, his attitude was brilliant – as professional as we saw in Abu Dhabi – so we just need to look into it before his next outing in Barcelona, what we can do to improve his feeling under braking. In FP2, Ollie was back in the car and straight away picked it up well. He had a slightly different brake issue, but he managed to put together one lap on soft tyres, but on high-fuel because of the issue he struggled a bit so we really need to solve the issue tonight. On Esteban’s side, I think he’s reasonably happy but he needs to find a bit more performance. Overall, I don’t think we’re in a bad place, as far as Friday’s go, but we need to solve the brake issue for Ollie and improve the car a little for FP3 and Quali.”

Aston Martin

Drugovich gave as good an account of himself as any of the rookies, pushing Stroll close and finishing just half a tenth back on the Canadian. But Aston Martin ran into problems in FP2, with Alonso suffering a steering malfunction that saw the steering wheel actually come off whilst driving. He had a lengthy stay in the garage to rectify the problem, meaning he set his flying lap out of sync with the rest. But despite being on a more evolved track, he still did not trouble the top 10 – as Aston Martin seem to be off the pace of their midfield rivals.

Fernando Alonso - FP2: 1:31.825, P15

"I think it's going to be a tough weekend. Before coming here, the characteristics of Bahrain was a concern for us and our package, but we will learn and see what we can do the rest of the weekend.

"We had an issue with the steering early in FP2, but the mechanics were able to change the parts and it was okay after that, so thank you everyone in the garage for getting it fixed quickly."

Lance Stroll - FP1: 1:35.116, P15; FP2: 1:32.382, P19

"I think we were on the back foot today so we'll see what we can come up with tonight after looking at the data. With the nature of the circuit, I don't think it's going to be an easy weekend for us, so there is going to be some work to do."

Felipe Drugovich - FP1: 1:35.198, P16

"It was pretty tricky out there, probably the lowest grip I've ever driven and different to the conditions I have driven in before. It was quite challenging, but once I got a feel for it I put a lap together which was okay.

"I felt a bit rusty because it's been a while since i've been in these cars, but it's always a pleasure and I really enjoyed myself."

Kick Sauber

Despite bolting on the softs relatively early, Hulkenberg wound up in the top 10 in FP1 and Bortoleto was not too far behind. But they were another team to fall backwards once the track conditions cooled, finding themselves well down the order in FP2. Whether they can find any pace remains to be seen, with no Q3 appearances just yet from either driver this season.

Nico Hulkenberg - FP1: 1:34.262, P6; FP2: 1:32.496, P20

"It was a tricky Friday. For the first time this year, we were facing really hot conditions – especially during daytime in FP1. The conditions differed quite severely from our test sessions in February. Though the run on soft tyres in particular did not meet expectations, we gathered a lot of data to help us to improve the car for the weekend. Now it is about reviewing both practice sessions in detail to make the right calls and be well prepared for the rest of the weekend.“

Gabriel Bortoleto - FP1: 1:34.628, P11; FP2: 1:31.772, P13

“Overall, it's been a positive day for us. FP1 was quite challenging with the high temperatures and a dusty track, which made the balance difficult to manage at times. The team did a very good job ahead of FP2 and we managed to make solid improvements with the setup – an effort for which I'd like to thank everyone in the garage. The car felt much more consistent, and I was happy with the performance we were able to extract. Looking ahead to FP3, there’s obviously still some work to do overnight, but I feel like we are in a decent place. We'll stay focused, keep pushing, and seek to carry this momentum forward.”

Pirelli

Simone Berra, Chief Engineer

“As is always the case at Grands Prix where part of the programme is run under artificial lighting, there are some free practice sessions that are more useful than others when it comes to drawing conclusions for the rest of the weekend. We saw that today with only FP2 providing useful insights for tomorrow and Sunday.

“Of course, all the teams had a huge quantity of data to work from, as they and all the drivers completed three days of pre-season testing here. However, the conditions are very different now, with much higher temperatures, if you think that at 18.00 the track temperature got has high as 38C, whereas during testing it never got above 19C.

“The most important point to take away from today is that we won’t see a repeat of what we witnessed in Suzuka a week ago, even though the tyre compounds are the same. The track and weather conditions are very different and we saw from today’s long runs that the level of thermal degradation on the tyres, not just on the rear axle but in some cases also on the front, was very high. It is therefore easy to imagine a two-stop race, with all three compounds potentially playing their part. It’s no coincidence that, unlike last year, seven teams have already run a set of Hard tyres.

“We didn’t see any particular issues in terms of tyre wear, with a very low level of surface abrasion.”