For non-Red Bull Racing fans, the F1 testing's initial phase might have felt like a cold shower, as Max Verstappen demolished the field by over a second.
Verstappen, who completed nearly three race distances with 143 laps, did so without any technical mishaps and set his best lap on medium tires. This tire compound will also be part of the tire allocation for next week's Bahrain Grand Prix, so it's not surprising that several teams preferred to test this mixture. Verstappen quickly took the lead in the morning session and executed his team's program flawlessly. Only Lando Norris managed to challenge him briefly, but the Dutchman then gave McLaren a gap of eight-tenths first, followed by over a second.
Ferrari's Carlos Sainz secured the third spot, similarly completing a full race distance and managing to stay close to his rival Norris. To some surprise, Daniel Ricciardo behind the wheel of the Racing Bulls had a strong day despite suspension issues, managing to get behind the frontrunners. Work continues tomorrow, and we can only hope that today's performance didn't perfectly reflect the 2024 power dynamics...
Photo: Formula1.com
