The times that put Red Bull in a league of its own so far in Bahrain

On the final day when Formula 1 teams attempt to disguise true performance levels from rivals ahead of the sessions that truly count, Red Bull moved into a class above the rest. Its pace compared to the competition looks set to give it a major advantage at the 2022 opener in Bahrain...

Alex Kalinauckas Mar 18, 2022, 8:18 PM

Formula 1 has waited a long time for its new era – the one that was supposed to herald a new age of success spread throughout the field. Well, the first day of real grand prix weekend action in Bahrain in 2022 ended in the same manner as how the final day of 2021 concluded: Red Bull and Max Verstappen on top.

The world champion led the way, but only just over Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. And Mercedes’ testing struggles appeared to carry over into the reality of the new season.

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Author Alex Kalinauckas

Alex Kalinauckas is Autosport's Grand Prix Editor, covering every Formula 1 race since the start of 2020. After completing a master's degree in journalism at Goldsmiths College University of London in 2014, he worked for a range of motorsport and technology publications while covering national racing as an Autosport freelancer.

A lifelong motorsport fan - no one in his family can explain quite how or why such a development first occurred - Alex joined the Autosport staff in April 2017 as the magazine’s Assistant Editor covering Formula 2 and GP3, before being made Formula E correspondent and Autosport.com’s Plus Editor in March 2018. He lives in north-east London and is constantly frustrated by the Central Line.