Ludo van Denderen is a motorsport journalist at GPblog, specializing in Formula 1 and international racing series.
After a year in which Max Verstappen almost always led the timesheets, the Dutchman has, for now, continued where he left off. The reigning Formula 1 world champion was the fastest out of 10 drivers in the first session of the test days in Bahrain.
Verstappen's gap to Charles Leclerc in sunny Bahrain was seven-tenths of a second. Behind the Monegasque in the Ferrari nestled Fernando Alonso. The latter in turn was faster than Oscar Piastri with his McLaren.
Problems for Russell and Albon
Mercedes had a lower lap count. George Russell had some problems with his car, and was inside for quite some time. In the end, Russell had to settle for sixth place, at first sight a disappointment given the German team's high ambitions for next year. Albon did not have a perfect test either. The Williams Thai had to retire his car in the closing stages. The exact cause is still unknown.
The results of the first test session in Bahrain
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