In the latest morning session of Formula 1’s pre-season testing in Bahrain, Charles Leclerc emerged as the fastest driver, showcasing impressive performance while Mercedes and Red Bull struggled with reliability issues, alongside Cadillac.
Approximately 75 minutes into the session, Leclerc clocked a time of 1m34.273s in Ferrari’s SF-26, marking him as four-tenths quicker than McLaren’s Lando Norris, who had set a benchmark earlier on Wednesday.
It’s noteworthy that Norris achieved his time of 1m34.669s using medium tires, while Leclerc utilized soft tires throughout the morning. Norris finished second with his medium-run time of 1m34.784s.
All other competitors lagged significantly, with every vehicle trailing by at least 2.4 seconds. While this disparity does not accurately reflect the competitive hierarchy, it is linked to the mechanical setbacks faced by the two leading teams.
Red Bull managed to complete only one lap at the very end of the morning session. The team discovered a hydraulic leak in the chassis during vehicle assembly the previous day. Isack Hadjar had been scheduled to drive for the entire day, and he will be eager to make up for lost time later.
At Mercedes, Andrea Kimi Antonelli managed just three laps before a power unit failure ended his morning session prematurely. George Russell was slated to take over driving duties in the afternoon.
In another development, Cadillac’s Sergio Perez triggered a red flag on his first out-lap for reasons that remain unspecified. However, following the retrieval of his car, he quickly returned to the track.
Perez completed a total of 42 laps, posting a personal best time of 1m38.653s, which placed him slower than all but Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso, who recorded a time of 1m38.960s.
Alpine’s Pierre Gasly stood out among the rest, achieving a notable lap time of 1m36.723s, leading ahead of drivers Oliver Bearman (Haas), Alexander Albon (Williams), Nico Hulkenberg (Audi), and Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls).
The session concluded with a Virtual Safety Car and red flag simulation, adding to the excitement of the day.
