Ricciardo gave the surprise and Alonso the best with average rubber in a useless premiere

Finally the wait is over. The 2024 Formula 1 season began with the first free practice sessions of the Bahrain GP. Daniel Ricciardo pulled off the surprise win with a RB record of 1.32.869 ahead of the two McLarens. The Australian took advantage of the fact that he was one of the few to use soft rubber and that helped him take the lead in some practice sessions that were not going to be decisive.

Although the first turns of this season were light, running in conditions that had nothing to do with classification or racing, there was a desire to start putting our cards on the table.

In the first attempts, the two Red Bulls started to lead, led by Verstappen. The Dutchman dropped time lap after lap but was very critical of the RB20’s set-up. “There were a lot of problems with the gearbox, the car was literally jumping,” he said on the radio.

But until the second half of the session came, we did not see the first important records with soft tires. The McLarens were the first to use the fastest rubber and took the lead. Later the two Visa Cash App RB drivers did the same and Daniel Ricciardo set a 1.32.869, an unbeaten time.

For his part, Alonso tested different settings of the AMR24 and in the second part of the session he reinstalled the medium tires and closed his time to within three tenths of Ricciardo’s time. He finished fifth in the classification and was the fastest of the drivers who set their time on medium tires.

Verstappen, for his part, finished behind Alonso, 45 thousandths behind the Asturian. It didn’t have the best debut in terms of sensations but its speed is definitely one of the most consistent in medium rubber. Behind him are Mercedes and Ferrari. The silver arrows and those from Maranello continue to fight to be a good alternative to Red Bull and Russell is leading the way

*In development