Verstappen Leads Laps Antonelli Tops Bahrain Test

The second test day of the second week in Bahrain is already done. Max Verstappen was the first driver on Thursday to clock more than a hundred laps, crossing the start‑finish line 139 times. The quickest time, however, belonged to Mercedes’ Andrea Kimi Antonelli — the Italian dived more than five hundredths under Oscar Piastri’s time in the final hour. Problems continued to stack up at Aston Martin: Fernando Alonso triggered the team’s second red flag of the week.

Lewis Hamilton was among the first drivers out once the afternoon session got under way. He had already lost valuable running in the morning after Ferrari spent hours working on the SF‑26 because of a “small problem.” Fernando Alonso was also keen to rake up mileage for Aston Martin, following teammate Lance Stroll’s issues a day earlier. The Spaniard, like his team‑mate, suffered a lock‑up, though the two‑time world champion was able to carry on.

Max Verstappen kept pushing and erased Lando Norris’s benchmark. A 1:33.162 put him on top of the times from his British rival. Norris had handed the MCL40 to team‑mate Oscar Piastri for the afternoon run. The Australian ran into trouble at Turn 12, running off the track, but was able to resume quickly. The remainder of the afternoon was plagued by multiple wheel lock‑ups across several drivers.

More trouble for Aston Martin

While the Cadillac team was still yet to complete its first metres on track, Aston Martin’s problems kept mounting. Fernando Alonso triggered Thursday’s first red flag when he suddenly ground to a halt during a race simulation. The AMR26 had to be taken away because of an issue with the power unit. But while Aston Martin was hauling the car back to the garage, Cadillac’s car – with Sergio Pérez at the wheel – finally went out for the first time. The Mexican’s best lap, 1:39.323, was still nowhere near that of his former team-mate, Max Verstappen. Oscar Piastri, however, managed to get close to the Dutchman’s time and even went three tenths quicker.

Beyond the scrap with Verstappen for the day’s fastest lap, Piastri also tangled with Hamilton on track. The seven-time world champion was able to pass the McLaren on fresher tyres. With one hour remaining of what had become the fifth test day in Bahrain, Andrea Kimi Antonelli sliced half a tenth under Piastri’s benchmark. Verstappen, meanwhile, put in the most laps of any driver on Thursday: with a hefty 139 tours, the Red Bull driver was the first to clear the 100-lap mark.

Result of the full second Thursday in Bahrain after the afternoon session