Lando Norris topped the timesheet in a difficult opening practice hour for the Bahrain Grand Prix weekend as the drivers all struggled with balance and grip on a sweltering hot Sakhir circuit.

The championship leader posted a 1:33.204 to finish the session 0.238s ahead of Pierre Gasly with Lewis Hamilton third, but half a second down.

Lando Norris tops a difficult FP1 in Bahrain

On a sweltering hot day at the Sakhir circuit, six rookies climbed into the cars for FP1 at the Bahrain Grand Prix as many of the teams covered their first young driver outing of the session, leaving only McLaren, Sauber and Racing Bulls yet to fill one of the four mandatory outings.

Ayumu Iwasa was the first driver out of the pits, the Japanese Formula 2 driver replacing Max Verstappen for the session. Clocking a 1:41.5, he was down in 16th place just 10 minutes as Lando Norris and Alex Albon sat P1 and P2, the McLaren driver leading the way with a 1:35.6.

Kimi Antonelli was cruising around the circuit, reporting: “I’ve got no power, mate.” He returned to the pits with a suspected water leak, that not helped by the track temperature hovering in the high 40’C.

Lewis Hamilton, meanwhile, complained that he had “no grip at all”, before adding: “Feels like the car is not working at all.”

Luke Browning, in the Williams in place of Carlos Sainz, had yet to set a time after 10 minutes, having covered two laps before heading back into the pits.

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As Norris upped his pace to a 1:35.2, it was evident that none of the drivers were happy with the balance of their cars.

Seventh on the timesheet in the early running, Hamilton told Ferrari his car was feeling “horrendous”. He returned to the pits with his team-mate for the session, Dino Beganovic, P17 as Ferrari tested a new floor.

As the drivers continued to iron out any niggles and work on setup, Yuki Tsunoda reported that his “throttle is not reacting quite well, it’s very slow, very lazy.” Liam Lawson told Racing Bulls the balance of his VCARB02 was “shocking”.

Bolting on a set of soft tyres, Nico Hulkenberg hit the front before being overhauled by Esteban Ocon and then Pierre Gasly. Meanwhile, Antonelli’s woes continue as his mechanics physically struggled to repair his W16.

Having pulled into the pits, Tsunoda drove past the Red Bull garage before having a moment in the pit lane with Albon. The Thai-British racer was then involved in another with his team-mate Browning, the Williams driver noted for impeding him in a hairy moment.

Norris returned to P1 late in the session, posting a 1:33.204 to finish two-tenths up on Gasly while Hamilton made a late move into third place. He was, however, almost six-tenths down on Norris.

Browning was the best placed of the FP1 subs as he crossed the line with the 13th fastest time.

Bahrain FP1 Lap Times

1 Lando Norris McLaren 1:33.204
2 Pierre Gasly Alpine +0.238
3 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari +0.596
4 Alexander Albon Williams +0.724
5 Esteban Ocon Haas F1 Team +0.980
6 Nico Hulkenberg Kick Sauber +1.058
7 Jack Doohan Alpine +1.192
8 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls +1.193
9 Yuki Tsunoda Red Bull Racing +1.280
10 Oscar Piastri McLaren +1.304
11 Gabriel Bortoleto Kick Sauber +1.424
12 Isack Hadjar Racing Bulls +1.463
13 Luke Browning Williams +1.681
14 Dino Beganovic Ferrari +1.851
15 Lance Stroll Aston Martin +1.912
16 Felipe Drugovich Aston Martin +1.994
17 Ryo Hirakawa Haas F1 Team +2.057
18 Frederik Vesti Mercedes +2.121
19 Ayumu IwasaRed Bull Racing +2.271
20 Kimi Antonelli Mercedes +4.847

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