Bahrain Grand Prix - FP1 Liveblog *CLOSED*

Formula 1 heads to the Bahrain International Circuit for the second round of the 2019 world championship. Valtteri Bottas currently leads the world championship but will Ferrari hit back or can Red Bull show they mean business this season? All the action from free practice one in Bahrain.

Ferrari expects to be much quicker in Bahrain than in Australia, a huge margin between the red cars and Mercedes left many up and down the grid scratching their heads but after two weeks off, the team says they will be there fighting this weekend.

Elsewhere, Haas looks to be the favourites in the battle for best of the rest. Kevin Magnussen was the only driver not to be lapped outside of the top teams and the American outfit will be looking to drive home their advantage in the heat of Bahrain.

We should see just how effective the aerodynamic rule changes have been after the relatively unrepresentative race at Albert Park a fortnight ago. Bigger rear wings and larger DRS gap could make the overtaking system massively effective in Bahrain and there is a new DRS zone added for 2019. Another chance for overtaking will be available to drivers between turns three and four and could lead to some fireworks this weekend.