Bahrain – EL2: Alonso in control ahead of the Red Bulls

End of day for the first day in Bahrain!

The second Free Practice session of the day ended at night, allowing drivers to practice in track conditions close to qualifying (Saturday at 16:00 p.m.) and the race (start at 16:00 p.m. Sunday).

It is on a faster route than Fernando Alonso has (again) made his Aston Martin by being the first to pass the 1'31 mark.

He finally clocked a 1'30”907… two seconds ahead of the pace set by Sergio Pérez this morning in 1'32”758.

Impossible for the Mexican to catch the reference time of the double world champion, he placed 3rd (+0.171). Max Verstappen takes 2nd position narrowly ahead of his teammate (+ 0.169), he who experienced some difficulties this morning at the wheel of the new RB19.

But the Dutchman found the solution to regain the upper hand over Pérez, without overcoming a decidedly very well-made AMR23.

Ferrari adjusts, Alpine in the middle of the table

Charles Leclerc gained one place compared to the first session of the day, finishing 4th (Ferrari, +0.460) after changing the rear wing and fixing his clutch problem at the start. His teammate Carlos Sainz, after EL1 aborted by an impressive but harmless spin, achieved a very discreet 14th place (+1.049). 

Behind the Monegasque, it is a Nico Hulkenberg impressive who hoists his Haas in 5th place (+0”469). Stroll finished 6th (+0”543), the Canadian having had difficulties throughout the day with his freshly operated right hand. The Aston Martin driver had already needed help to get out of his car this morning, and struggled to handle the steering wheel in turns. Will he be able to keep his place for the rest of the weekend?

Esteban Ocon was the first to embark on a flying lap on the soft tires, with his teammate Alpine Pierre Gasly on his heels.

The two Frenchmen reassured the garageenstone (UK). The newcomer at A fléché took 7th (+0”568), while Ocon placed his A523, in pink livery for the first three meetings of the season, at the gates of the top 10: the Normand signs 11th place (+0”701).

Mercedes seeks solutions

The upper half of the ranking is completed by Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes, +0”636), Lando Norris (McLaren, +0”663) and Guanyu-Zhou (Alfa Romeo, +0”679). At Mercedes, George Russell had to settle for 13th time (+0”975), which made him the last driver within a second of Alonso's reference time. At the end of this second test session, we were busy working on the two black single-seaters in the German garage, particularly on the flat bottom.

In the battle of the rookies, it's Piastres (15th, +1”117) who took the advantage despite a tricky MCL60 and several wheel locks at the first corner. Nyck de Vries placed 19th (Alpha Tauri, +1”698), while Logan sargeant closes the ranking (Williams, +1”842).

The ranking of Free Practice 2: 

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