Sports News | Sainz Tops F1 Testing in Bahrain, Magnussen Back for Haas

Sakhir, Mar 11 (AP) Ferrari's Carlos Sainz set the fastest time during preseason testing on Friday, while Kevin Magnussen was back for Haas in the place of fired Russian driver Nikita Mazepin.

Sainz topped the Formula One charts with a lap of 1 minute, 33.532 seconds on the 5.4-kilometer (3.4-mile) desert track in Sakhir. Defending champion Max Verstappen was next for Red Bull, followed by Aston Martin's Lance Stroll.

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Lewis Hamilton had the fourth-best time — 0.6 seconds slower than Sainz — in his new-look Mercedes that is the rage of the paddock because it sports much narrower sidepods compared to testing in Barcelona two weeks ago.

Haas dropped Mazepin from its drivers' lineup because his father is a close associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Magnussen, who had driven for the American-owned team from 2017 through 2020, got behind the wheel after Mick Schumacher drove the morning session.

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Haas was granted four hours of extra testing — one tacked on to Friday's session and three extra hours scheduled for Saturday — to make up for time the team lost on Wednesday due to the late arrival of freight shipments that left the team without enough time to assemble its car.

Team principal Guenther Steiner said people were exhausted and would rather have had the time moved to Sunday, which was not approved.

“We never wanted extra running, we just wanted the same running as everyone else ... Some of the guys stayed up 30 hours to get the cars ready for yesterday (afternoon),” Steiner said Friday. “We just asked for Sunday morning, which was a better solution.”

Nicholas Latifi had a scare when his brakes burst into flames after just 12 laps, sending his Williams spinning to a stop. The Canadian driver grabbed a fire extinguisher and helped stewards put out the fire that engulfed the rear of his car.

“I had to get my firefighter skills out there," Lafiti said, adding that he put out a fire in his car years ago when driving in Formula Three.

Esteban Ocon had the fastest lap time in the morning session, which was later bettered by other drivers. Things did not go as well after lunch for the Alpine driver when his car came to a stop on the track, bringing out a red flag.

Drivers tested under windy and hot conditions with temperatures hitting 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius) on the Bahrain International Circuit before cooling at sunset.

Daniel Ricciardo missed the day's testing due to illness. McLaren said it was hopeful he could test on Saturday, which is the final day of testing before the season begins in Bahrain on March 20. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)