Summary

  • Fernando Alonso tops second practice for season-opener in Bahrain

  • Alonso making debut for new team Aston Martin

  • Red Bull's Sergio Perez earlier topped first practice and finished third in FP2 behind team-mate Max Verstappen

  • Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton P8 and George Russell P13

  • World champion Verstappen and his Red Bull team set pre-season testing pace

  • Ferrari, Mercedes and Aston Martin appear best of the rest based on testing times

  • Use audio icon at top of the page to listen to BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra commentary

  • Get involved via #bbcf1

Live Reporting

Lorraine McKenna

  1. Alonso edges out Red Bulls in second practice

    Andrew Benson
    BBC Sport’s chief F1 writer in Bahrain

    Fernando AlonsoGetty Images

    Fernando Alonso pipped pre-season favourites Red Bull to set the pace in practice at the Bahrain Grand Prix.

    The Aston Martin driver was 0.169 seconds quicker than world champion Max Verstappen, with the second Red Bull of Sergio Perez third fastest.

    Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was fourth and Lewis Hamilton the fastest Mercedes in eighth, 0.636secs off the pace.

    Nico Hulkenberg's Haas, Lance Stroll's Aston Martin and Pierre Gasly's Alpine filled the gaps ahead of Hamilton.

    Read the full report here

  2. Back on Saturday at 11:00 GMT

    Time for us to close down for the night.

    Thanks for joining us, folks. Enjoy your Friday night and we'll see you again on Saturday from 11:00 GMT for the first qualifying session of the 2023 season.

    Live commentary of third practice and qualifying will be available to listen to on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra, the BBC Sounds app and on the live text page.

    Catch you tomorrow.

  3. Will Alonso claim a podium?

    Just before the session ended, I asked if you thought Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso could claim a podium finish at the season opener in Bahrain this weekend.

    Take your place in the top three, Fernando. 1,014 of you think the two-time world champion will be spraying champagne on Sunday, compared to 289 of you who think a podium spot will be out of reach.

    Thumbs.

  4. Rest of the top 10

    6. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)

    7. Pierre Gasly (Alpine)

    8. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)

    9. Lando Norris (McLaren)

    10. Zhou Guanyu (Alfa Romeo)

  5. Speed machine

    Fernando Alonso takes the opening section of the lap, Max Verstappen is the speediest in the middle sector, before the Aston Martin man regains control in the final portion of the Sakhir circuit.

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  6. Top five

    1. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) - 1:30.907 (soft)

    2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.169 (soft)

    3. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) +0.171 (soft)

    4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.460 (soft)

    5. Nico Hulkenberg (Haas) +0.469 (soft)

  7. Below the front tow, Red Bull's Sergio Perez finishes in third place, Charles Leclerc brings the Ferrari home in fourth and the Haas of Nico Hulkenberg ends the session in fifth spot.

  8. chequered flag

    Chequered flag

    That's it for Friday practice in Bahrain.

    Who topped the session? Mr Fernando Alonso in the Aston Martin.

    The Spaniard banked a 1:30.907 on the soft tyres, 0.169secs quicker than second-placed Max Verstappen in the Red Bull.

  9. "Out lap critical," Lewis Hamilton is told be his Mercedes race engineer. The seven-time world champion is inside the top 10, but is down in eighth spot between the Alpine of Pierre Gasly and the McLaren of Lance norris.

  10. It will be interesting to hear how Lance Stroll is feeling after the session following his wrist injury.

    Out on track, Max Verstappen and Fernando Alonso are both clocking laps in the 1:37s.

  11. The balance of the Ferrari is good, Charles Leclerc tells his Ferrari engineers.

    Meanwhile, a radio message for Lance Stroll. "Compromise Turn One for a better little line into Turn Two," the Canadian is instructed.

    Can he deliver? "I can't because of my hands," Stroll informs his pit wall.

  12. Whether Fernando Alonso and his Aston Martin will still be this high up deep into the season remains to be seen.

    But do you think the two-time world champion will claim a podium spot this weekend?

    An early thumbs prediction that could possibly go out of the window after qualifying tomorrow.

  13. Just 0.975 seconds separates Fernando Alonso in P1 down to George Russell in 13th place.

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  15. Sergio Perez is sounding annoyed on the team radio as his Red Bull pit wall try to rectify a problem the Mexican is experiencing. Seems like Perez has lost the ability to see his lap times.

    Here's how we stand with around 15 minutes to go.

    LeaderboardFormula 1 Twitter

  16. Red has been tapped out in favour of some yellow medium tyres over at Aston Martin for Fernando Alonso.

    The two-time world champion, starting his 20th season in Formula 1, is holding firm at the peak of the sheets with that time of 1:30.907 on the soft compounds.

  17. While Charles Leclerc stays within the boundary of the top five, his team-mate Carlos Sainz is finding the second practice session frustrating. The Spaniard is stuck down in 14th place on the time sheets and has just experienced a fairly scruffy lap in the SF-23.

  18. George Russell is down in 13th place and has been on the team radio to tell Mercedes to check the floor, as the 25-year-old has had a bit of a wobble.

  19. Top five

    1. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) - 1:30.907 (soft)

    2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.169 (soft)

    3. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) +0.171 (soft)

    4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.460 (soft)

    5. Nico Hulkenberg (Haas) +0.469 (soft)

  20. But here comes Max Verstappen.

    The Dutchman said the RB19 wasn't behaving itself in the opening exchanges of the session, so has anything changed?

    Well, he picks off Red Bull pal Sergio Perez but he can't swat away veteran driver Fernando Alonso.

    The reigning world champion slots into second spot with a 1:31.076.

    Soft tyres across the board now.