Nico Rosberg made a clear statement of intent on Friday when he topped the times twice ahead of Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton in practice for today’s Bahrain Grand Prix.
The 30-year-old German produced a best lap of 1 minute, 31.001 seconds in the floodlit second session at the Bahrain International Circuit to outpace the defending three-time world champion by 0.241 seconds.
The two Mercedes men were more than a second clear of the rest of the field led by Jenson Button, in a surprisingly competitive McLaren-Honda, who was third on the day that reserve driver Stoffel Vandoorne made an impressive debut in 11th.
Photo: AP
Button was 1.280 seconds slower than Rosberg, but after their dreadful season last year, this was a major step forward for the McLaren team.
Rosberg’s continuing success, after winning the season-opening race in Australia, ensured he was in a confident mood.
“I could not wait to get back in the car after a great weekend in Melbourne and I felt really good out there,” Rosberg said. “It has been an encouraging first day for the team. We were very quick on one lap and also on the longer runs, so I am really looking forward to qualifying and the race.”
“I like this track very much. The atmosphere is great and it looks really spectacular driving under the lights in the evening. It should be an exciting weekend,” he added.
Hamilton, who won the last two Bahrain races, said: “That was a good Friday, overall. The car is performing really well here. There were no surprises or issues to report throughout both sessions, which is always a good sign. Understanding the tires has been the key to our work today as they will be a big factor this weekend. There is some work to do tonight in terms of finding a few improvements from the car and also my driving style. I am looking forward to getting back out there and making some more progress tomorrow [yesterday].”
Dutch teenager Max Verstappen was fourth fastest for Red Bull ahead of Kimi Raikkonen, the 2007 champion, and four-time champion Sebastian Vettel, in the two Ferraris.
Vettel ended the session watching the action from behind a barrier after a problem with the left rear of his car brought him to a halt at turn 12.
“The left rear corner was not tight, the nut was not on,” Vettel said. “We do not know 100 percent [what happened]. I felt, coming out of turn four, that I lost drive so I decided to stop. Obviously, we do not want to risk or damage the car, but it is a shame because I wanted to do a couple of more laps. You try not to take a risk. It is incredibly important to do the mileage and get the information on Friday, but it is also important to make sure the car is in a good condition for the whole weekend and season.”
Daniil Kvyat was seventh for Red Bull, ahead of both Valtteri Bottas of Williams and his Australian teammate Daniel Ricciardo, who was ninth.
Felipe Massa was 10th in the second Williams.
On his maiden outing with McLaren Honda following the enforced withdrawal of two-time champion Fernando Alonso, the team’s official reserve driver Vandoorne was an impressive 11th fastest.
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