Sebastian Vettel edged team-mate Charles Leclerc as Ferrari dominated the second practice session for Formula 1’s Bahrain Grand Prix.
Leclerc beat Vettel to the quickest time in the daytime opening session but it was the four-time World Champion who prevailed beneath the floodlights on Friday evening.
Vettel posted a time of 1:28.846 to beat Leclerc by 0.035s, despite sliding wide through the final corner on his best Soft tyre effort.
The session was not without drama for Vettel as he spun through Turns 2/3 during his long run, having clouted the Turn 2 kerb, but he was able to recover and continue his programme.
Ferrari’s advantage was such that third-placed Lewis Hamilton’s best lap was over six-tenths behind Vettel, with title leader Valtteri Bottas a further tenth adrift in fourth, with Mercedes unable to get close to its Italian opponent.
Renault was able to emerge as best-of-the-rest, with Nico Hulkenberg placing fifth, demoting the lead Red Bull of Max Verstappen to sixth position.
Their respective team-mates, Daniel Ricciardo and Pierre Gasly, were substantially further down the pecking order, with the Renault driver 15th and his Red Bull replacement 12th.
Haas, after its subdued showing in the first session, was higher up the table, with Kevin Magnussen seventh and Romain Grosjean ninth, sandwiching McLaren rookie Lando Norris.
Daniil Kvyat kept Toro Rosso in the top 10, with former team-mate Carlos Sainz Jr. putting his McLaren MCL34 into 11th spot.
Toro Rosso’s Alexander Albon and Sergio Perez took 13th and 14th respectively.
Alfa Romeo had a disjointed session as Kimi Raikkonen spun through Turn 2 on an out lap before his C38 appeared to leak fluid when he was in the garage, restricting him to just six laps.
Team-mate Antonio Giovinazzi also completed minimal running, managing just four laps until he re-appeared in the final 10 minutes, as he placed 18th, albeit within a tenth of the Finn.
Williams again finished at the back of the field with George Russell taking 19th, seven-tenths of a second behind nearest rival Giovinazzi.
Team-mate Robert Kubica was over a second behind the reigning Formula 2 champion at the very rear of the pack, leaving the Pole four seconds down on Vettel.
Saturday’s 60-minute third practice session will begin at 15:00 local time
