Hamilton leads Mercedes one-two in second practice for F1 Bahrain GP

Lewis Hamilton led a Mercedes one-two ahead of team-mate George Russell in the second practice for the season opening Bahrain Grand Prix on Thursday.

Hamilton, who will join Ferrari from 2025, clocked the fastest time of 1 minute 30.374 seconds, while Russell was 0.206 second behind. The Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso completed the top three.

Champion Max Verstappen, who is aiming for a fourth consecutive and overall drivers' title, was only sixth in both practices. The Red Bull driver had numerous complaints about his car, especially in the first session earlier.

Ferrari were fourth with Carlos Sainz and ninth with Charles Leclerc and, while Daniel Ricciardo of Visa RB, who topped the first practice, was just 12th

Red Bull's pre-season was overshadowed by accusations that team principal Christian Horner had an alleged “inappropriate behaviour” towards a female colleague.

Horner emphatically denied the claim and after an investigation conducted by Red Bull Racing's parent company Red Bull GmbH, he was cleared of wrongdoing on Wednesday. The complainant has a right to appeal against the verdict.

Asked by broadcasters Sky on Thursday if he was relieved, Horner said: "Yes, just happy to be here for the first race."

Details of the investigation were not made public, but F1 team principals demanded more transparency in these cases.

"I think the sport needs more transparency. As a sport, we cannot afford to leave things vague and in the dark," Mercedes boss Toto Wolff said in a news conference.

Third practice and qualifying for the Bahrain GP are on Friday, with the race on Saturday.

Due to Ramadan, the Islamic holy month starting on March 10, the first two F1 races of the season in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are being held on a Saturday, instead of Sunday as per tradition. Practice sessions and qualifying are also taking place a day earlier than usual.