By Canadian Press on February 28, 2025.
SAKHIR, Bahrain (AP) — The afternoon session of Formula 1 preseason testing was briefly interrupted Friday when a shuttle bus drove on the track.
In a bizarre scene, a red flag was waved to halt testing as a white bus drove slowly on a runoff area of the track at Bahrain International Circuit.
It wasn’t the only oddity of the day.
In the morning session, there was a brief red flag after a pane of glass fell from the starter’s box and shattered on the edge of the track. Workers quickly arrived with brooms and swept up the shards.
Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc was fastest on the morning of the final day of testing.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli, the 18-year-old rookie who took over Lewis Hamilton’s spot at Mercedes, was next at .077 off the pace, followed by McLaren’s Lando Norris and then four-time defending champion Max Verstappen for Red Bull.
Hamilton, who said Thursday he’s “ really enjoying ” his Ferrari, drove in the afternoon session.
Friday is the third and final day of preseason testing. The first race of the season is the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on March 16.
Aston Martin switched its schedule to move Lance Stroll to afternoon testing after the Canadian driver felt unwell in the morning; Fernando Alonso moved to the morning session.
___
AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
The Associated Press