Charles Leclerc pips George Russell on final day of F1 2024 testing
Ferrari stayed on top on the final day of F1 pre-season testing in Bahrain.
Charles Leclerc kept Ferrari at the top of the timesheet on the final day of F1 pre-season testing in Bahrain.
After teammate Carlos Sainz topped the second day of running, it was Leclerc’s turn to set the pace on the third and final day of testing at Sakhir to round out a strong week for Ferrari.
Leclerc’s time, set on the soft C4s, was not as quick as the benchmark pace set by Sainz on day two.
A late run on C4s saw George Russell put his Mercedes second, just 0.046s off Leclerc, while Zhou Guanyu - also using softs - was another late improver to end the day third, 0.325s adrift in his Sauber.
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who was quickest by more than a second on Wednesday, was only fourth-quickest and 0.433s off the pace.
However, Verstappen posted his best time of the day on a used set of medium C3 tyres, suggesting there is plenty more pace in his Red Bull RB20.
For the second time in as many days, a loose drain cover forced a lengthy red flag stoppage, resulting in the lunch break being cancelled to ensure the teams could complete the full eight hours of scheduled running.
Yuki Tsunoda teased a glimpse of the pace of RB - Red Bull’s sister team - by going fifth-fastest thanks to a late C4 run.
A soft-shod Alex Albon popped his Williams into sixth late in the day, ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso.
Sainz and Sergio Perez, who avoided major damage when he ran over the drain cover, completed the top-10 for Ferrari and Red Bull.
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton was third-quickest in a disrupted morning but was shuffled down to 12th by the end of the day as conditions improved.
Red Bull certainly appear the clear favourites heading into next weekend’s season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix, but Ferrari will be encouraged by their showing in testing.
