Charles Leclerc topped the timesheet at the midway point of the afternoon session in Bahrain as the Monegasque gets his season up and running. Leclerc took over driving duties from team-mate Lewis Hamilton and fired in the lap time just 15 minutes before the halfway point. The Ferrari driver displaced George Russell, going two-tenths of a second faster than the Mercedes driver. Rookie Kimi Antonelli had the fastest time in the morning but dropped to fifth place, with Lando Norris and Pierre Gasly pitching themselves in the top four. Max Verstappen's latest title-defending campaign got underway in the afternoon, with the Red Bull driver slotting himself into sixth place ahead of team-mate Liam Lawson. Lawson was the first driver to spin his car in the morning session but was joined in the exclusive club by Isack Hadjar. The Racing Bulls rookie lost control of his challenger on the exit of Turn 4 and pirouetted around before continuing on his way. The morning efforts from Alex Albon, Yuki Tsunoda, and saw them fill out the final positions in the top 10. Norris had a slow start to his afternoon, clocking just 10 tours of the circuit at the halfway point in the session - by far the fewest in the field. However, a late effort before the two-hour mark saw him leap into third place. Bortoleto was the only driver in the field who did not register an official lap time during the first two hours of the session.
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