FP2 Report: Double red flags but Lewis Hamilton tops FP2 in Bahrain

Lewis Hamilton topped the second free practice session in Bahrain despite there being two red flags. The first came after an Alex Albon crash before the red flag was back out after the restart because of a dog on the track! 

Hamilton didn't set a competitive time until the last half an hour due to the double red flags. However, his time of 1:28.971 was enough to put him top of the timesheets for the second successive session in Sakhir. The Brit has already secured a seventh-World Championship but will want add to his tally of ten race wins this season and his performances on Friday only made him the bigger favourite to do so.

Max Verstappen finished second after leading for large periods of the session. It looked as if the Dutchman might see the session out on top but Hamilton persisted with the faster laps to drop the Red Bull man down. Valtteri Bottas finished third.

Double red flags

The first of two red flags came out when Alex Albon had a heavy crash. Coming out of the final corner, the Thai driver ran a little wide and paid the price as he spun, crashing into the barrier. Thankfully Albon was able to step out the car, but his vehicle was a little worse for wear to say the least, leaving the team with a big job on their hands. 

The session had only just restarted when it was forced to pause again. No crash this time, rather a dog had found a way through the fence and onto the circuit, much to the amusement of Sebastian Vettel who said on his radio: "Who let the dogs out?" and asked if he could bring his own dog.

Rest of the field

Sergio Perez was fourth for Racing Point, with Daniel Ricciardo fifth and Pierre Gasly sixth. The McLaren pair of Lando Norris finished seventh and Lance Stroll came through in P8. Daniil Kvyat was ninth and depsite his crash, Albon finished tenth.