Pre-season testing for Formula One was suspended for a second day in a row on Friday at Bahrain’s Sakhir track due to a loose drain cover.
Following repairs at Turn 11, the track activity continued. The customary lunch break was abandoned, and the session was set to last until 7 p.m. local time (1600 GMT).
Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes and Charles Leclerc of Ferrari crashed over the loose cover on Thursday, stopping testing and necessitating the replacement of the latter’s car’s floor.
On Friday, with 27 minutes remaining, Sergio Perez of Red Bull lifted another drain cover at the same corner, raising red flags once more and necessitating more track repairs following an examination.
Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz had been fastest before the latest suspension, with the Spaniard also topping the timesheets on Thursday.
Drivers have only a day and a half of pre-season testing each, with three days allocated in total for teams to test with one car each. Some have said three days is insufficient for getting to grips with the highly sophisticated new cars.
The first race of the season is at the same Bahrain circuit on Saturday next week.
