F1 LIVE | Follow the Second Free Practice session of the Bahrain GP in Malaysia

Max Verstappen led FP1 from George Russell in a reverse of the top two from last time out in Baku. Drivers both spoke of their enjoyment of the track but also the extreme tyre degredation in a first running of the circuit since 2017.

Due to the ongoing Middle East conflict between the United States, Israel, and Iran, the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix could not take place in April. The Bahrain Grand Prix has been rescheduled, but Formula 1 will not return to the Sakhir International Circuit this year. Instead, Malaysia will host the Bahrain Grand Prix at the Sepang International Circuit, around 6,000 kilometres away from its original location.

Formula 1 returns to the Malaysian circuit for the first time since the 2017 season. That year, Max Verstappen was victorious. In 2026, he is still looking for his first victory with Red Bull Racing after finishing less than two-tenths of a second behind George Russell last weekend in Baku. Lewis Hamilton and Daniel Ricciardo completed the podium nine years ago in Sepang.

In terms of the championship standings, Russell managed to cut the gap to Kimi Antonelli after a stunning performance at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The gap currently stands at 66 points, but it could have been even smaller if the Italian had failed to recover to fifth place in Baku after his crash in qualifying. Hamilton is currently in third place, 103 points behind Antonelli.