BAHRAIN TEST – Sergio Perez fastest by three tenths ahead of Lewis Hamilton on final day of testing
Sergio Perez was fastest on the final day of pre-season testing at the Bahrain International Circuit. The Red Bull driver set a 30.305 on the C3 tyre which put him three-tenths ahead of the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton, but the consensus appears to be Red Bull remain the favourites going into next weekend’s opening race.
The Red Bull has looked the most stable car on track as well as looking very slippery in a straight line. Hamilton’s time was also set on the same tyre compound on what was a more positive afternoon for Mercedes after the difficulties they had on Friday, with the fastest times coming during the corresponding qualifying hour for next weekend.
But the void between the two teams was emphasised by the fact that the seven-time world champion’s best time came on a softer – and theoretically faster – tyre than the Red Bull driver was using.
Valtteri Bottas put his Alfa Romeo third going nearly two-tenths faster than the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc. While it is expected that Ferrari will be closer come qualifying and the race next weekend, the Monacan admitted the car to be better in a straight line compared to its 2022 challenger but thinks it will perhaps struggle slightly “more in the corners”
Max Verstappen said Red Bull’s test at Bahrain’s Sakhir track, which also hosts the opening race, had been “very good – the car is working really well”. The Dutchman wasn’t on track on Saturday, but reports say during the press conference the two-time champion appeared to ooze confidence about the season ahead in an appearance in the middle of the final day.
Leclerc was ahead of his teammate Carlos Sainz by just over two-hundredths of a second. Ferrari look still to be the closest challenger to Red Bull with Mercedes not too far behind going into the new season, however, the normal caution is still required given its only testing despite it proving in recent years to be a more reliable guide.
Ferrari may not have shown their full potential as their qualifying simulations were done before the time of next weekend’s qualifying. Sainz did his soft-tyre runs before the sun went down to create optimal conditions in Sakhir and finished fifth as he managed a lap just twelve-thousandths of a second slower than the one his team-mate Charles Leclerc had set earlier in the day, with the pair 0.7s back from Perez.
Yuki Tsunoda put his Alpha Tauri fifth over half a second faster than the Haas of Kevin Magnussen. George Russell had ended his morning stint second four-tenths off Leclerc at the lunch break, however when the chequered flag fell the Englishman ended the day eighth, seven-tenths behind Magnussen.
The Aston Martin’s rounded out the top ten, Fernando Alonso going nine hundredths faster than the teams reserve driver Felipe Drugovich. Both drivers managed to prove the car is a lot stronger than in 2022 as well as reliable, between them they managed a hundred and fifty-seven laps.
Lando Norris only managed thirty-five laps going eleventh fastest, the McLaren setting a 32.763 going six hundreds behind the Brazilian. Norris was six tenths faster than his expected rivals Alpine’s Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon, as the Frenchman’s car looks not to suit the circuit and conditions in Sakhir.
There is far more concern at McLaren, who continued to face problems with the wheel brows on their MCL60 which severely limited their running and left them as the team to complete the fewest lap across the three days. Norris’s teammate Oscar Piastri could only manage sixteenth.
McLaren, fifth last year, have admitted they will start the season on the back foot after missing their development targets.
Alex Albon put his Williams thirteenth going nearly half a second faster than Ocon. Nico Hulkenberg was fifteenth ahead of Piastri and Nyck de Vires who rounded out the field.
Teams will get three hours to fine tune the cars next Friday and Saturday before qualifying (at 18:00 AST / 15:00 GMT), to get ready for the opening weekend of the season.