Did you catch Verstappen blazing through Sepang’s first practice, leaving rivals in his wake?
Back on the Kuala Lumpur outskirts for the first time since 2017, the Dutch champion reclaimed his rhythm, lapping 1:37.520—three‑tenths clear.
Russell, fresh from his Baku win over Verstappen, posted the second‑fastest time in a Mercedes upgraded for the weekend.
The upgrade marks Mercedes’ first major tweak since the Canadian GP, adding a new floor, rear suspension and rear corner.
For my money, the Silver Arrows still have work to do before they can match Red Bull’s pace, yet Antonelli will aim to close to Russell after the leader’s 0.6s gap.
Antonelli landed fifth, a full second off Verstappen, a week after being out‑classed by Russell, who trimmed the Italian’s lead to 66 points.
Only Russell stayed within half a second of Verstappen; Hadjar, serving a five‑place grid penalty, was third in the second Red Bull, 0.7s slower.
“Everyone is fighting with the car because of the extreme heat so it doesn’t feel good for anyone. It’s fair to say, relative to the others, we were not too far from the ballpark.”
Ferrari lagged far behind in first practice, with Leclerc fourth and Hamilton sixth, both over 0.8s off Verstappen’s time.
McLaren fell further back, missing the top ten as Piastri and Norris took 11th and 12th, testing their ‘Macarena’ rotating rear wing versus the standard spec.
The sweltering, humid Malaysian air and dusty surface quickly made tyre wear a factor on the old tarmac and its long, fast corners.
Mercedes’ pit wall told Russell his long soft‑tyre stint looked like an outlier, suffering higher degradation than rivals.
Red Bull’s Mekies warned, “It’s early days. We saw the high deg of the Mercedes but everyone is out of the [set‑up] window now.”
Will Gasly’s midfield surge translate into a podium push as the season unfolds?
Friday Oct 2
8.45am: Bahrain GP Practice Two (session starts at 9am)*
10.15am: The F1 Show*
Saturday Oct 3
5.15am: Bahrain GP Practice Three (session starts at 5.30am)*
8am: Bahrain GP Qualifying build‑up*
9am: BAHRAIN GP QUALIFYING*
Sunday Oct 4
6.30am: Grand Prix Sunday: Bahrain GP build‑up*
8am: THE BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX*
10am: Chequered Flag: Bahrain GP reaction*