Antonelli tops final practice at Sepang for Bahrain Grand Prix

Centre · 1Championship leader Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes topped the final practice session for the Formula One Bahrain Grand Prix at Sepang, Malaysia, on Saturday 3 October, with a lap of 1 minute 36.302 seconds on soft tyres. 1 Centre · 1The 20-year-old had been only eighth fastest in Friday's second practice session. Red Bull's Max Verstappen was second fastest, Isack Hadjar third (a little over half a second slower than Antonelli) and Mercedes' George Russell fourth, more than six-tenths behind, ahead of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton. 1 Centre · 1McLaren's Lando Norris, the only driver in the top 10 on medium tyres, was seventh and team mate Oscar Piastri eighth, with Alpine's Franco Colapinto and Racing Bulls' Arvid Lindblad completing the top 10. The session was briefly red-flagged to remove debris that had tangled in Haas driver Oliver Bearman's front-right tyre. 1

Centre · 2Russell trails Antonelli by 66 points in the standings; Antonelli has won eight races this season, though The National said he struggled in Baku, where he crashed in qualifying and recovered to fifth. 1 2 Centre · 3Malaysia is hosting the race, which was originally scheduled for April in Sakhir, because of the conflict in the Middle East. Outlets describe the cause as the Iran war and the Middle East situation (CNA, ABC) or as geopolitical tensions (Anadolu). 3 4 2 Centre · 2Anadolu, citing Bernama, said the move followed an agreement between Formula 1, the FIA and the governments of Malaysia and Bahrain, and that about 95,000 three-day passes had been sold. CNA reported that owners Liberty Media announced the race would be billed as the "Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia". 4 3

Mixed · 2It is Formula One's first visit to Sepang since 2017, after Malaysia's government said it could no longer justify the costs given declining returns. Only 10 of the 22 drivers have raced there before, so Norris and Piastri were learning the track. Verstappen won the last race there in 2017. 3 5 Mixed · 3The 5.543-km circuit's abrasive surface was a theme. Pirelli described it as "relatively abrasive" and expected low grip on Friday, Piastri said it "looks like sandpaper", and Arab News (AFP) reported track temperatures above 60C and forecasts of a three-stop race. 6 5 3 Mixed · 2Antonelli said the open surface could suit a wet race because water would not sit on top, while Verstappen chose a long run on medium tyres in Friday's second practice for fear of rain, finishing fourth. Verstappen had topped Friday's first practice, and Russell said Verstappen looked quickest over a single lap and McLaren on long runs. 6 5

Mixed · 2Qualifying is scheduled for Saturday and the 56-lap race (310.417 km) for Sunday at 3 pm local time. Mercedes brought a heavily updated car to Sepang, and Russell said it was hard to judge the upgrades' true effect. 4 5