Max Verstappen walks through the paddock after the first test session on the first day of F1 testing at the Bahrain International Circuit on February 21, 2024. (Photo by Kym Illman/Getty Images)
- Max Verstappen was impressive on the first day of testing ahead of the new F1 season in Bahrain.
- The Red Bull driver started in third place, more than a second faster than Carlos Sainz, who is in his final year as a Ferrari driver, and Lando Norris in a McLaren.
- Verstappen has won the last three F1 championships.
- For more sports news, news 24 sports cover.
Three-time world champion Max Verstappen dominated the first day of winter testing on Wednesday, giving his struggling rivals little hope for optimism ahead of F1's new season.
Read | 'F1's overall problem' Mercedes boss calls for transparency in Christian Horner investigation
The Red Bull driver was more than a second faster than Carlos Sainz, who is in his final year as a Ferrari driver, and Lando Norris in a McLaren, finishing third at the Sakhir track, where the season opener will be held on March 2.
Sainz will lose his Ferrari seat to seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, who is entering his final season behind the wheel of Mercedes. Hamilton is scheduled to compete on Thursday.
Verstappen's performance was a boost for Red Bull, which is reeling from an investigation into team chief Christian Horner, who was accused of “inappropriate behavior” by a female member of his team.
“It's nice to be back in an F1 car again and I had fun on track today. We did a lot of laps and tried quite a lot with the car, which was important. Overall the result I'm very happy with that,” Verstappen said.
Horner was questioned for eight hours at an internal hearing in London in early February after allegations surfaced in the Dutch press that a female employee had made a complaint against a 50-year-old British man. exposed.
Mr Horner categorically denied the accusations, but said F1 leaders wanted to resolve the matter at the “earliest opportunity”.
Testing times for Day 1 of 3 on Wednesday are:
1. Max Verstappen (NED/Red Bull) 1:31.344 seconds (143 laps, 2. Lando Norris (GBR/McLaren) +1.140 (73), 3. Carlos Sainz (ESP/Ferrari) +1.240 (69), 4. Daniel Ricciardo (Australia/Racing Bulls) +1.255 (52), 5. Pierre Gasly (France/Alpine) +1.461 (61), 6. Lance Stroll (Canada/Aston Martin) +1.663 (54) , 7. Charles Leclerc (MON/Ferrari) +1.903 (64), 8. Fernando Alonso (ESP/Aston Martin) +2.041 (77), 9. Oscar Piastri (AUS/McLaren) +2.314 (57), 10. Chou Guanyu (CHN/Sauber) +2.527 (63), 11. Logan Sargent (USA/Williams) +2.538 (21), 12. George Russell (UK/Mercedes) +2.765 (122), 13. Yutaka Tsunoda Takeshi (Japan/Racing Bulls) +2.792 (64) ), 14. Valtteri Bottas (FIN/Sauber) +3.087 (68), 15. Alex Albon (THA/Williams) +3.243 (40), 16. Esteban Ocon (France/Alpine) +3.333 (60), 17. Kevin Magnussen (DEN/Haas) +4.348 (66), 18. Nico Hulkenberg (GER/Haas) +4.562 (82)
