Russell pips Verstappen to go fastest on Day 3

George Russell gave Mercedes a constructive finish to the 2025 System 1 pre-season testing as he beat Crimson Bull’s Max Verstappen to the highest spot on the ultimate day in Bahrain.

Hotter circumstances for day three on the Sakhir circuit meant even Russell’s main time didn’t topple the lap set by Williams driver Carlos Sainz on day two.

At Ferrari, which led the morning session with Charles Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton didn’t appear to benefit from the last half-day to testing – his SF-25 being off the street a number of occasions in his early long-run work, earlier than he went into the storage after finishing simply 47 laps to not return.

Russell – in for Andrea Kimi Antonelli at Mercedes for the second session on Friday – did 91 laps, which included one other full race simulation.

The one different driver from the main groups to do that was McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, who appeared to once more have a transparent edge over Russell’s W16 – albeit on a run that regarded a lot more durable than Lando Norris managed on day two in temperatures round 4C increased.

Verstappen didn’t full a full distance race run both, which implies Crimson Bull leaves Bahrain as the one one of many typical high 4 squads on this place.

Nonetheless, the workforce did the same testing programme in Bahrain in 2024. In contrast to that check, Verstappen did appear to focus on efficiency operating late within the last session – together with Williams driver Alex Albon, Piastri and Russell.

They due to this fact shuffled earlier afternoon chief Pierre Gasly right down to fifth on the day for Alpine.

Gasly had gotten forward of Leclerc with a collection of runs on the C3s that took the perfect time first to a 1m30.459s, then 1m30.282s, with simply over half the ultimate four-hour session remaining.

Over an hour later, Verstappen, who to that time had been battling the steadiness of his RB21 in moderately mid-2024 style, blasted to the highest spot with a C3-shod 1m29.844s and shortly afterwards went faster on a 1m29.799s on the identical compound.

With an hour of the check remaining, Albon used the C4s the drivers had been struggling to heat up even on the warmer last day to nip forward on a 1m29.650s, earlier than Verstappen obtained again forward with a 1m29.566s.

Piastri slotted in behind them with a time that will be 0.4s down on the day’s finest time with simply half-hour left, after which Esteban Ocon – who ended the day eighth for Haas with that workforce’s first efficiency run of the entire check set halfway by means of the afternoon – spun surprisingly at Flip 1.

Verstappen additionally went round at practically the identical spot a short time later and afterwards, with simply seven minutes left Russell – having barely accomplished his race sim – was despatched again out with the C3s and he duly established the day’s benchmark time at 1m29.545s.

That is 0.197s slower than Sainz went on Thursday – with the elevated temperatures on Friday coming on the value of rear tyre life on push laps given the tough Bahrain floor.

Hamilton ended the day sixth quickest, forward of Yuki Tsunoda, Ocon and Leclerc.

F1 2025 pre-season check outcomes on Day 3