Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz set the pace during the second day of Formula 1 test action at the Bahrain International Circuit on Friday.
Sainz set a time of 1:33.532s during the afternoon to wind up almost half a second clear of reigning World Champion Max Verstappen.
Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll finished third, ahead of Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton and Alpine’s Esteban Ocon, who topped the morning session before being shuffled down to fifth.
McLaren endured another troublesome day amid ongoing brake-related issues, with fresh components not set to arrive until Saturday.
Lando Norris once more had to carry out full duties for a second successive day as Daniel Ricciardo remained unwell and was not able to venture to the circuit.
McLaren completed the fewest laps of any team bar Williams – 60 – and also caused one of the red flag periods when Norris’ MCL36 stopped on the main straight.
AlphaTauri completed the most laps courtesy of Yuki Tsunoda, who amassed 120.
Kevin Magnussen returned to Formula 1 action for the first time since the 2020 finale in Abu Dhabi, ahead of his surprise comeback with Haas.
Magnussen took over the VF-22 from Mick Schumacher.
Magnussen is due to run for another hour, with a further three hours permitted beyond the allotted schedule on Saturday, in order for Haas to make up for the session it missed due to freight delays out of its control.
Williams did not run throughout the afternoon owing to the damage caused to the FW44 by the brake-related fire in the morning session.
The final day of pre-season testing is due to begin at 10:00 local time.
| # | Driver | Team | Time | Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | C. Sainz | Ferrari | 1:33.532 | 60 | |
| 2 | M. Verstappen | Red Bull | 1:34.011 | 0.479 | 86 |
| 3 | L. Stroll | Aston Martin | 1:34.064 | 0.532 | 70 |
| 4 | L. Hamilton | Mercedes | 1:34.141 | 0.609 | 47 |
| 5 | E. Ocon | Alpine | 1:34.276 | 0.744 | 111 |
| 6 | C. Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:34.366 | 0.834 | 54 |
| 7 | K. Magnussen | Haas | 1:34.532 | 1.000 | 45 |
| 8 | L. Norris | McLaren | 1:35.761 | 2.229 | 60 |
| 9 | S. Vettel | Aston Martin | 1:36.020 | 2.488 | 46 |
| 10 | Y. Tsunoda | AlphaTauri | 1:36.802 | 3.270 | 120 |
| 11 | V. Bottas | Alfa Romeo | 1:36.987 | 3.455 | 25 |
| 12 | M. Schumacher | Haas | 1:37.846 | 4.314 | 23 |
| 13 | G. Russell | Mercedes | 1:38.585 | 5.053 | 67 |
| 14 | N. Latifi | Williams | 1:39.845 | 6.313 | 12 |
| 15 | G. Zhou | Alfa Romeo | 1:41.805 | 8.273 | 48 |
