2024 F1 Bahrain Grand Prix – Free Practice 1 results

RB’s Daniel Ricciardo on track during FP1 for the Bahrain Grand Prix.

Check out the complete results from the first practice session at the Bahrain Grand Prix, where Daniel Ricciardo claimed a surprise top spot.

While warm temperatures of 33 degrees celsius greeted the drivers as they peeled out on track for the first practice session of 2024, the conditions were surprisingly tricky with big gusts of wind making life difficult for the cars.

With the green light on, all the drivers headed out to begin their first session in earnest and get their eye in ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix.

Daniel Ricciardo and McLaren impress early on

While Max Verstappen was an early leader with a mid-1:33 in his Red Bull RB20, the Dutch driver complained about the downshifts on his car that resulted in him withdrawing to the garage for a closer look.

Before he headed back out on track again with around 25 minutes to go, the McLarens and RBs took over at the head of the field as they completed some soft tyre runs – first with Oscar Piastri on a 1:33.113 that Lando Norris beat by two-tenths of a second.

Returning to action full-time this season with RB, Red Bull’s second team, Daniel Ricciardo lobbed in a 1:32.869 to go quickest with 20 minutes to go while teammate Yuki Tsunoda bookended the McLarens with fourth place.

Fernando Alonso was fifth for Aston Martin as the fastest of the medium tyre runners, ahead of Verstappen who, despite resuming the track after his garage visit, failed to improve his time beyond a 1:33.238 – the reigning World Champion complaining about inconsistent upshifts again in the closing minutes.

Surprisingly, the times remained steady until the chequered flag, with few improvements – perhaps due to the inconsistent gusting wind.

Towards the back, the two teams that have been the most pessimistic about their chances duly brought up the rear of the field – Alpine and Haas occupying the bottom four spots.

Bahrain Grand Prix: Daniel Ricciardo bags surprise P1 but there’s more to the FP1 story

FP1 Practice Results – 2024 Bahrain Grand Prix

1. 1. Daniel Ricciardo RB 1:32.869
2. 2. Lando Norris McLaren +0.032
3. 3. Oscar Piastri McLaren +0.244
4. 4. Yuki Tsunoda RB +0.314
5. 5. Fernando Alonso Aston Martin +0.324
6. 6. Max Verstappen Red Bull +0.369
7. 7. George Russell Mercedes +0.382
8. 8. Charles Leclerc Ferrari +0.399
9. 9. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes +0.433
10. 10. Valtteri Bottas Stake +0.485
11. 11. Carlos Sainz Ferrari +0.516
12. 12. Sergio Perez Red Bull +0.544
13. 13. Alex Albon Williams +0.714
14. 14. Lance Stroll Aston Martin +0.999
15. 15. Zhou Guanyu Stake +1.054
16. 16. Logan Sargeant Williams +1.344
17. 17. Esteban Ocon Alpine +1.938
18. 18. Pierre Gasly Alpine +2.275
19. 19. Kevin Magnussen Haas +4.608
20. 20. Nico Hulkenberg Haas +5.069