Bahrain Grand Prix – Free Practice 2: Verstappen shines, Ferrari reassures

Second observation round

For this second free practice session, it is about driving under the same conditions as in the race on Sunday. That is, in the evening, at night, and with ground temperatures lower than during qualifying in particular.

Even though the pre-season tests have been very productive, unlike in 2014 during the previous regulation change, teams still need to tame their new racing cars. Especially from an aerodynamic point of view. This is a huge change. It’s a return to ground effect cars that we haven’t seen since the end of the 1982 season.

A first part of the session dedicated to getting one’s bearings.

One after the other, Leclerc, Sainz, Alonso, and Verstappen take the top three positions. The Haas team, on soft tires, also impresses with their 8th and 10th place finishes. It takes going back a few years to find them achieving a similar feat.

We always observe these annoying bounces for everyone, especially at Mercedes and Alpine. Lewis Hamilton and Esteban Ocon regularly complain about them. The Silver Arrows clearly seem quite unstable. The porpoising phenomenon is very significant, and impressive at night with the sparks generated by the scraping of the undertray.

But in general, it is the front end that struggles to reach the apex.

McLaren is still uncertain and still hasn’t managed to solve its front brake overheating issues.

The hierarchy begins to take shape little by little in the second part of the session

What we saw during the preseason tests seems to confirm it. The Ferraris are back at the front of the pack. And this is mainly due to their significant engine upgrade.

Indeed, the Haas and Alfa Romeo teams are also powered by a latest generation Ferrari engine, and their rise in the hierarchy is currently impressive.

We also find the Red Bull team among the cars to keep an eye on, especially the one adorned with the number 1. Max Verstappen should have the equipment allowing him to fight to retain his crown.

The disappointment would come from Williams, always at the back of the pack with underperforming and difficult-to-handle cars. Equipped with the Mercedes power unit, they have also bought the technology from the German brand aimed at cooling the engine. And even though the Williams car doesn’t have side pods as slim as the Silver Arrow, it takes inspiration from it. Is this one of the causes for the lack of performance?

Interestingly, Aston Martin and McLaren, also powered by the German manufacturer, are struggling and remain stuck in the lower part of the rankings.

As for the Mercedes, they seem really difficult to drive. Russell is currently a bit faster than his reigning world champion teammate. The latter seems to have lost his bearings and needs to adapt his driving. Unless they are secretly hiding their true potential, which seems unlikely, the Silver Arrows appear to be slightly behind.

Complete rankings of this second free practice session: