Antonelli tops Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia final practice ahead of Red Bulls

Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli topped the final hour of practice at the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, with both Red Bull’s separating the two Mercedes. 

Feature image credit: Mercedes F1

Practice around the Sepang International Circuit has now concluded for the re-hosted Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, and it was Antonelli who topped the timing boards after the final hour of practice. 

The Italian set the fastest lap of 1m 36.302s, 0.610 seconds ahead of his teammate – and championship rival, George Russell. However, the two Red Bulls split the Silver Arrows inside the top four times. 

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen found himself in second place by the end of the session, 0.278 seconds off the pace, ahead of Isack Hadjar, who was a further 0.558s behind Antonelli’s best time. 

3 drivers set for Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia penalties

Only a handful of drivers pulled out onto the circuit when the pit exit light turned green, such as Alpine’s Franco Colapinto, Cadillac’s Sergio Perez and Racing Bull’s Liam Lawson – all sporting soft-compound tyres.

As more drivers hit the circuit, by the 15-minute mark, the majority of them had opted for the soft-compound tyres, except Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who started his session programme on the hard tyres. The McLaren’s started on the Mediums. 

The red flag was flown just before the halfway mark. Debris was left out on track, left by Haas’ Oliver Bearman, at turn 10, coming from his right-front tyre. It was quickly swept up by a marshal and the session was shortly resumed, just as the session crept into the second half. 

FP3’s provisional fastest man, Norris was the first driver out on track, with a 1m 37.161s. The defending world champion was slowly followed by the rest of the field, including the two Mercedes, Red Bulls and Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton, who were yet to peel onto the Sepang track before the red flag. 

Verstappen top in F1 return to Sepang for Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia

Of the five drivers, the Red Bulls opted to follow McLaren’s lead with both Hadjar and Verstappen starting their opening stints on the medium compounds, before moving onto the softs at the end of the hour. 

In the soft-tyre runs, in the dying embers of the session, Antonelli topped the timing boards with both Red Bull’s separating the Mercedes. Russell soon dropped to fourth place, whilst the two Ferrari’s of Leclerc and Hamilton finished fifth and sixth, respectively, seven-tenths off the pace.

McLaren’s Norris and Oscar Piastri could only best seventh and eighth overall, despite the former previously standing as the fastest driver out on track. The defending world champion found himself eight-tenths away from Antonelli, whilst Piastri was just over a second.

So, who finished where in the final hour of practice?

FP3 Classification:

1. Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes – 1m 36.302s
2. Max Verstappen, Red Bull +0.278s
3. Isack Hadjar, Red Bull +0.558s
4. George Russell, Mercedes +0.610s
5. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari +0.714s
6. Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari +0.739s
7. Lando Norris, McLaren +0.859s
8. Oscar Piastri, McLaren +1.064s
9. Franco Colapinto, Alpine +1.618s
10. Arvid Lindblad, Racing Bulls +1.782s
11. Gabriel Bortoleto, Audi +1.902s
12. Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin +1.921s
13. Pierre Gasly, Alpine +1.939s
14. Esteban Ocon, Haas +1.950s
15. Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls +1.964s
16. Nico Hulkenberg, Audi +2.054s
17. Oliver Bearman, Haas +2.390s
18. Carlos Sainz, Williams +2.414s
19. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin +2.509s
20. Alexander Albon, Williams +2.747s
21. Valtteri Bottas, Cadillac +3.629s
22. Sergio Perez, Cadillac +3.921s

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Kamron Kent

Hi, I’m Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion.

I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I’ve loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.

Kamron Kent

Hi, I'm Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion. I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I've loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.