Lando Norris put in a dominant performance in the first practice session of the Bahrain Grand Prix , recording the quickest lap time on a sweltering afternoon at the Sakhir Circuit . The McLaren driver beat Pierre Gasly and Lewis Hamilton as six rookie drivers took to the track, completing the obligatory young driver runs in Free Practice 1.
Lando Norris leads the way in the first practice session of Bahrain GP as teams experiment with soft tyre runs
With temperatures on the track climbing in the Bahrain heat, initial laps were tentative, and many drivers were finding it hard to find grip. Liam Lawson had called the balance of his Racing Bulls vehicle ‘shocking’ over the radio.
Halfway through the session, Alex Albon momentarily topped the timing screens for Williams with a 1m 35.180s lap time on medium tyres. He was closely followed by Lando Norris and Pierre Gasly, laying the ground for a close fight as teams shifted to soft tyre runs in the second half.
A series of tweaks ensued. Kick Sauber's Gabriel Bortoleto had first gone fastest before Nico Hulkenberg took his place. But Lando Norris would eventually set the fastest time, a searing 1m 33.204s, two-tenths clear of Gasly, with Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton securing third place.
Rookies steal the spotlight as veteran drivers make way
Friday morning's opening Bahrain session saw several new faces on the grid, as teams heeded regulations requiring newcomers to participate in FP1 sessions during the course of the season. Ayumu Iwasa, Dino Beganovic, Frederik Vesti, Felipe Drugovich, Ryo Hirakawa, and Luke Browning were entrusted with the reins at Red Bull, Ferrari, Mercedes, Aston Martin, Haas, and Williams, respectively.
Their participation had the consequence that big names like Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc, George Russell, Fernando Alonso, Carlos Sainz, and Ollie Bearman were absent from the session.
The newcomers were not slow to leave their mark, with Ayumu Iwasa leading the first group out of the pits. But it wasn't all plain sailing—Kimi Antonelli in the Mercedes was hit by a power problem within a few minutes and had to crawl back slowly to the pits. The team subsequently diagnosed a loss of water pressure as the probable cause.
Also Read: Bahrain Grand Prix 2025: Dates, schedule, streaming information, weather and more details
Now, teams will study the evidence from the inaugural session, particularly from the rookie's precious mileage and soft tyre runs. In more representative conditions anticipated in Free Practice 2 at 1800 local time, drivers will come back armed with better-sorted setups and more incisive strategies for the rest of the weekend.
Lando Norris leads the way in the first practice session of Bahrain GP as teams experiment with soft tyre runs
Lando Norris sets the early pace in Sakhir #F1 #BahrainGP | Full FP1 Report 👇https://t.co/ZPojGGbYJX
— Formula 1 (@F1) April 11, 2025
With temperatures on the track climbing in the Bahrain heat, initial laps were tentative, and many drivers were finding it hard to find grip. Liam Lawson had called the balance of his Racing Bulls vehicle ‘shocking’ over the radio.
Halfway through the session, Alex Albon momentarily topped the timing screens for Williams with a 1m 35.180s lap time on medium tyres. He was closely followed by Lando Norris and Pierre Gasly, laying the ground for a close fight as teams shifted to soft tyre runs in the second half.
A series of tweaks ensued. Kick Sauber's Gabriel Bortoleto had first gone fastest before Nico Hulkenberg took his place. But Lando Norris would eventually set the fastest time, a searing 1m 33.204s, two-tenths clear of Gasly, with Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton securing third place.
Rookies steal the spotlight as veteran drivers make way
Friday morning's opening Bahrain session saw several new faces on the grid, as teams heeded regulations requiring newcomers to participate in FP1 sessions during the course of the season. Ayumu Iwasa, Dino Beganovic, Frederik Vesti, Felipe Drugovich, Ryo Hirakawa, and Luke Browning were entrusted with the reins at Red Bull, Ferrari, Mercedes, Aston Martin, Haas, and Williams, respectively.
Their participation had the consequence that big names like Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc, George Russell, Fernando Alonso, Carlos Sainz, and Ollie Bearman were absent from the session.
The newcomers were not slow to leave their mark, with Ayumu Iwasa leading the first group out of the pits. But it wasn't all plain sailing—Kimi Antonelli in the Mercedes was hit by a power problem within a few minutes and had to crawl back slowly to the pits. The team subsequently diagnosed a loss of water pressure as the probable cause.
Also Read: Bahrain Grand Prix 2025: Dates, schedule, streaming information, weather and more details
Now, teams will study the evidence from the inaugural session, particularly from the rookie's precious mileage and soft tyre runs. In more representative conditions anticipated in Free Practice 2 at 1800 local time, drivers will come back armed with better-sorted setups and more incisive strategies for the rest of the weekend.
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