The hashtag #bbcf1 on Twitter is open for you to send us your predictions.

Is this first qualifying of the season shaping up to be a Fernando Alonso masterclass?

Will two-time world champion Max Verstappen continue his 2022 form by sticking the Red Bull on pole?

Are Ferrari the sandbaggers in the pack? Can Mercedes pull off a surprise front-row seat?

Get your thoughts into us.

Image source, Formula 1 Twitter

Fernando Alonso and Max Verstappen got to share the track as the pair jostled to end the final practice session as the quickest driver.

When the chequered flag was dropped, it was the Aston Martin of Alonso whose pace narrowly claimed top spot on the timesheets, beating world champion Verstappen by 0.005secs in the Red Bull.

Happy times over at Mercedes as Lewis Hamilton finished inside the top five in fourth place, ahead of the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc in fifth.

Hello again, folks. The first proper test of the new season is just under an hour away.

Qualifying gets going at 15:00 GMT, with full radio commentary available from 14:55 GMT on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra, the BBC Sounds app and at the top of this page using the audio icon.

One driver is making waves in the desert this weekend...

Green machine?

Image source, Reuters

Or raging bull?

Image source, Getty Images

Andrew Benson
BBC Sport’s chief F1 writer in Bahrain

Image source, PA Media

Fernando Alonso continued Aston Martin’s remarkable Bahrain Grand Prix weekend with fastest time in final practice.

The two-time champion, impressive throughout Friday, was 0.005 seconds ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in the last session before qualifying.

Red Bull’s Sergio Perez was third fastest and the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton was more competitive than it appeared on Friday, 0.215secs off the pace.

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was fifth, 0.284secs behind Alonso, ahead of Hamilton’s team-mate George Russell and the second Aston Martin of Lance Stroll.

The margins between the leading cars were smaller than they appeared on Friday, when Hamilton had said Mercedes were “on the wrong track” and “a long way off”.

There remains a degree of disbelief about Aston Martin’s performance, as it is very rare for teams to make such a large leap in competitiveness and they finished last season seventh in the championship.

But teams up and down the pit lane have been saying that Alonso’s pace is genuine and that the car has looked quick from the start of pre-season testing, and qualifying is awaited with excitement and anticipation.

Can we write the Fernando Alonso headlines now?

Come back and join us for build-up to the first qualifying session of the 2023 season.

Should be a good one.

See you shortly after a rapid pit stop.

"Come on guys. This is twice now," was Lewis Hamilton's response to being sheepishly pushed back into the garage by his Mercedes crew.

1. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) - 1:32.340

2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.005

3. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) +0.106

4. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) +0.215

5. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.284

6. George Russell (Mercedes) +0.391

7. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin +0.579

8 Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) +0.605

9. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.705

10. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +0.724

Rosanna Tennant
5 Live F1 reporter

I have eyes on Lewis as he is being reverse wheeled up the pit lane. Unusual that Mercedes got it wrong [not doing practice starts].

Max Verstappen comes home in second place, with team-mate Sergio Perez in third spot. The Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton finishes in fourth and Charles Leclerc places the Ferrari in the top five in fifth. Soft tyres all round.

Andrew Benson
BBC Sport’s chief F1 writer

It is only final practice and we are only going to know for sure what the pace is later but the evidence is here in front of our eyes.

Maybe Mercedes are better than Hamilton is saying.

Are Ferrari going to reveal some scarlet pace before the session comes to a close?

Doesn't look like it. Carlos Sainz has to settle for seventh spot, while his team-mate Charles Leclerc goes fifth fastest to split the two Mercedes.

Sergio Perez has had to be patient in third practice while his Red Bull mechanics work on his car. The Mexican finally makes his way onto the track and goes third quickest with a 1:32.555 on the softest tyres available.

Over at Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton is having issues with a rogue tear-off that has become a menace to one of his tyres.

Sam Bird
Formula E driver on BBC Radio 5 Live

Aston Martin is legit. It was a little bit of a scrappy lap from Verstappen - again he's suffering a little bit with understeer.

If they can cure that he could be a few tenths clear but make no mistake, Fernando Alonso is in the hunt this weekend

1. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) - 1:32.340 (soft)

2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.005 (soft)

3. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) +0.215 (soft)

4. George Russell (Mercedes) +0.391 (soft)

5. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +0.579 (soft)

Max Verstappen and Fernando Alonso are the new power dynamic for 2023.

Dutchman Verstappen, aiming for a third consecutive drivers' title, banks a 1:32.345 on some red rubber to push Lewis Hamilton off P1.

But in the blink of an eye, here comes Alonso to clock a time just 0.005secs quicker than the Red Bull.

Fernando leads the field with six minutes to go.

The Mercedes drivers are ready to show us some table-topping pace on the softs.

George Russell bumps Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso down the order to go quickest with a 1:32.731, before Lewis Hamilton nudges his Silver Arrows pal off top spot with a time 0.176secs faster.

Sam Bird
Formula E driver on BBC Radio 5 Live

The fact that Stroll is capable of doing a time like that has put the discussion to bed. I think he was a little bit more hampered yesterday because his hand was a bit stiff. I think he will have issues tomorrow towards the end of the race.

The timesheets are beginning to change as drivers complete their second runs. The Alfa Romeo of Zhou Guanyu pops his 2023 car into the top three with a time two tenths off Lance Stroll's quickest marker.