Verstappen leads Friday practice at Sepang as Hadjar confirmed for five-place grid drop

By Vancouver Television Sports Desk

Friday practice for the 2026 Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia at the Sepang International Circuit delivered a familiar theme for teams competing in hot, abrasive conditions: widespread tyre degradation, evolving track grip and a narrow performance window heading into Qualifying. Max Verstappen topped the opening session for Red Bull and again delivered a strong message in the second session, setting the tone for a weekend that multiple teams described as both demanding for the cars and difficult to compare between runs.

In FP1, Verstappen recorded a time of 1:37.520 to lead the field, followed by a 1:37.785 effort that placed him P4 in FP2. The broader concern from Red Bull’s side was the need to understand overheating and tyre behaviour across the two programmes, with Verstappen saying the track was “very hot with a lot of degradation” during FP1 and that the warmer conditions and different running in FP2 made direct comparisons “difficult.” His comments also reflected a positive day overall, noting two “positive sessions” despite remaining questions heading into the next day.

Isack Hadjar carried much of the Red Bull optimism into the second session, finishing P3 in FP1 and moving to P2 in FP2. He described the weekend start as “very good” in terms of competitiveness and said the track remained challenging, with “a lot of lap time to find,” while he was “not completely happy with the balance” yet. Looking ahead to Saturday, Hadjar predicted a “short and sharp” Qualifying session with limited tyre laps available, while expressing confidence that the team could “fight at the front” if it improved overnight.

The performance boost came with a clear consequence for Sunday’s race: it was confirmed that Hadjar will take a five-place grid drop. The reason given in the team’s Friday reporting was fitting a new ICE, linking the penalty directly to the power unit component change rather than on-track results.

Red Bull’s Technical Director Pierre Wache also addressed the day’s technical variables. He said the heat made Friday “challenging” but that the team had made a strong start to the weekend, including evaluating a package brought to Baku and testing different types of corners, particularly at low speed. Wache also described the Sepang surface as “extremely dusty” with grip evolving through the day, and he said the long-run focus on Medium tyres in FP2 was prioritized after rain was expected but did not appear.

Ferrari’s Friday assessment pointed to a close field and continued track evolution. The team reported both cars inside the top six in FP1, with Charles Leclerc finishing P4 (1:38.367) before improving to take P1 in FP2 with a 1:37.528 on the soft tyre. Lewis Hamilton finished P6 in FP1 (1:38.590) and P5 in FP2 (1:37.833), described as only three tenths behind Hamilton’s teammate’s pace, as Ferrari emphasized that competitors could improve further and that degradation would be a major storyline.

Hamilton also received a warning related to blocking Gabriel Bortoleto at one point during Friday running. The reporting states the stewards opted to issue a warning “for that moment,” framing it as a single incident rather than a race-suspension-type sanction.

McLaren’s Friday running suggested both progress and uncertainty around how the car would behave as the day changed. In FP1 the team focused on testing rear wing configurations, and the drivers were closely matched, separated by just 0.017s. For FP2, McLaren shifted to a more conventional programme, with Lando Norris taking P3 (1:37.665) on his flying lap, while Oscar Piastri was P6 (1:37.899). Norris characterized the opening day as “fun” but admitted McLaren were “struggling more than we’d like,” while still claiming progress going into FP2. Piastri said his FP1-to-FP2 improvement left them feeling “in the mix,” though he described true long-run performance as an “unknown for everyone,” citing high grip challenges and tyre degradation.

Elsewhere on the grid, Mercedes and others highlighted temperature-driven tyre stress. George Russell finished P2 in FP1 (1:37.903) but was P7 in FP2 (1:38.020), while Kimi Antonelli was P5 in FP1 (1:38.580) and P8 in FP2 (1:38.060). The reporting notes both made a mistake through the final corner on their soft-tyre flying laps in FP2, meaning their times were not fully representative. Russell nevertheless identified tyre wear concerns, while Antonelli pointed to overheating that “slightly neutralises the performance” of additional downforce and suggested the team still needed to find the right operating window.

McLaren partner comments from the wider paddock reinforced the day’s strategic implications. The tyre wear environment was repeatedly linked to a higher likelihood of a two-stop approach in these conditions, with Pierre Gasly’s Alpine team emphasizing that degradation remained “consistently high all day.” Gasly finished P7 in FP1 (1:38.715) and P10 in FP2 (1:38.588), stating the team was “in the mix inside the top ten” and that the car was in a good place, with focus on building data from high and low fuel running.

Alpine’s Franco Colapinto, meanwhile, faced both performance and penalty constraints. He was P19 in FP1 (1:40.531) and P22 in FP2 (1:43.391) and was described as operating from a high-fuel, race-focused plan. The reporting states Colapinto is set for two grid penalties: five places for the collision in Baku and an additional 10 places after it was confirmed he has taken another ICE for this race. Alpine’s leadership described the team’s rationale as including preparing for overtaking and collecting key tyre understanding for Sunday’s expected degradation.

Racing Bulls-related reporting in the Friday summary also referenced a back-of-the-grid situation for Arvid Lindblad after taking multiple new power unit components. He was P9 in FP1 (1:39.197) and P11 in FP2 (1:38.678), and the reporting adds that Liam Lawson used a more common medium-soft programme and finished inside the top 10 in both sessions. Lindblad was described as having an entertaining fight with Gabriel Bortoleto as teams gauged how easy overtaking may be in Sepang’s hot, evolving conditions.

With Friday’s running complete, the teams’ consensus was clear: grip and degradation are likely to shift between sessions, and overnight setup work will be decisive for Qualifying. Verstappen and Hadjar ended the day with a strong competitive message for Red Bull, while Ferrari, McLaren and others pointed to a tight field that could compress further once teams refine their car balance and tyre strategy for Saturday’s shorter, higher-stakes session.