Ricciardo tops windy first practice for F1 season opening Bahrain GP

Daniel Ricciardo was a surprise in the first practice of the new Formula One season as he topped a windy opening session for the Bahrain Grand Prix on Thursday.

The Visa RB driver (formerly Alpha Tauri) clocked the fastest time of 1 minute 32.869 seconds ahead of the McLaren pair of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Visa RB's second car with Yuki Tsunoda was fourth.

Champion Max Verstappen, who is aiming for a fourth consecutive and overall drivers' title, was only sixth. The Red Bull driver complained of "very inconsistent downshifts," while many drivers struggled with the windy conditions.

Mercedes were seventh and ninth with George Russell and Lewis Hamilton respectively, while Ferrari had Charles Leclerc in eight and Carlos Sainz in 11th.

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 also 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."

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.