Summary
- Verstappen recorded Friday’s fastest lap, although Leclerc led FP2.
- Mercedes finished seventh and eighth in the afternoon as Sepang complicated tyre preparation.
- Hamilton escaped a grid penalty following his incident with Gabriel Bortoleto.
Max Verstappen finished Friday fastest on Formula 1’s return to Sepang, but Charles Leclerc’s FP2 performance and difficult tyre conditions left the competitive order unresolved. Mercedes also faced questions after its major upgrade debuted without either driver reaching the afternoon’s top five.
Away from the timing sheets, Lewis Hamilton avoided a grid penalty following his incident with Gabriel Bortoleto, while Ferrari received a fine. These are the main developments from Friday, 2 October, in Formula 1, ahead of qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia.
Verstappen leads Friday — Leclerc tops FP2
Verstappen’s 1:37.520 in FP1 remained the quickest lap of the day. Leclerc subsequently led FP2 with 1:37.528, just 0.008s slower than the morning benchmark, ahead of Isack Hadjar and Lando Norris.
That narrow difference links two sessions with different conditions and programmes. It does not establish a qualifying order, particularly because Verstappen completed his afternoon running without switching to soft tyres.
Readers can compare the sessions in the full combined Friday practice results.
Verstappen’s tyre programme complicates comparisons
The Red Bull driver finished fourth in FP2, behind three competitors who recorded their best laps on soft tyres. His medium-tyre programme makes that position an incomplete measure of his outright speed.
Verstappen acknowledged the difficulty of judging progress between sessions because the afternoon was hotter and Red Bull followed a different programme. The team’s work therefore offered information about tyre behaviour while leaving questions over its qualifying potential.
The explanation of why Verstappen skipped soft tyres in FP2 sets out the distinction between his session position and his fastest overall Friday lap.
Sepang’s asphalt becomes a central challenge
Grip and degradation are shaping the weekend as much as the upgrades brought by individual teams. Sepang’s abrasive surface, dust and high temperatures complicated the drivers’ attempts to produce consistent performance.
Pirelli found Friday’s benchmark more than four seconds slower than its qualifying simulation reference. That comparison concerns expectations for the current cars, rather than a direct measurement against the 2017 Malaysian Grand Prix.
The challenge extends beyond a flying lap. Teams need to establish which compounds offer sustainable race pace, with the hard tyre still untested after Friday.
Mercedes has work to do after upgrade debut
George Russell finished seventh in FP2, with Kimi Antonelli eighth. Russell’s best lap was 0.492s slower than Leclerc’s, leaving Mercedes behind Ferrari, Red Bull and McLaren in the afternoon classification.
However, both Mercedes drivers encountered problems completing their qualifying attempts: Antonelli lost a lap to track limits, while Russell abandoned an attempt in the final sector. Those details matter before treating the result as proof that the upgrade failed.
The analysis of Mercedes’ FP2 performance explains what the timing sheet reveals and which questions remain for Saturday.
Hamilton avoids a grid penalty after Bortoleto incident
Hamilton received a warning following the FP2 incident in which Bortoleto had to take evasive action. Ferrari was fined, but the seven-time champion will not lose grid positions as a result of the incident.
The outcome separates the investigation from the sporting penalties already affecting other drivers this weekend. Hamilton finished FP2 fifth, while Bortoleto was 12th before his session ended with a technical problem.
The report on Hamilton’s warning and Ferrari’s fine covers the decision after the session.
Vasseur calls for unity as Vowles questions the cost cap
Ferrari team principal Frédéric Vasseur urged the organisation to remain united amid speculation about his future and Hamilton’s comments about the wider leadership structure. His message was that assigning blame would hinder the team’s efforts to improve.
That discussion continued alongside a broader challenge from Williams boss James Vowles, who argued that the cost cap has failed to compress the field. His concern is the gap between the leading teams and those trying to overcome longstanding infrastructure disadvantages.
Read Vasseur’s response to the Ferrari debate and Vowles’ argument about a “two-tier championship”.
Saturday brings FP3 and qualifying
The next competitive test comes on Saturday, 3 October, with FP3 at 12:30 Malaysia time and qualifying at 16:00. For viewers in the UK, those sessions begin at 05:30 and 09:00 BST; in India, at 10:00 and 13:30 IST.
Qualifying starts at 04:00 EDT in New York and Toronto, 01:00 PDT in Los Angeles and Vancouver, and 18:00 AEST in Sydney. The complete Saturday schedule includes additional time zones and the Friday-night start of FP3 for parts of North America.
Formula 1 continues this weekend, from 2–4 October, in Malaysia, which hosts the Bahrain Grand Prix. GRANDE PRÊMIO will cover all the action at Sepang.
F1 today: FAQ
What time is F1 qualifying at Sepang?
Qualifying starts on Saturday, 3 October, at 16:00 Malaysia time. That is 09:00 BST in the UK, 04:00 EDT in New York and Toronto, 01:00 PDT in Los Angeles and Vancouver, 13:30 IST in India and 18:00 AEST in Sydney.
Did Lewis Hamilton receive a grid penalty for the Bortoleto incident?
No. Hamilton received a warning after impeding Gabriel Bortoleto during FP2 at Sepang. Ferrari was fined €10,000, but Hamilton will not lose grid positions over the incident.
Why were F1 lap times at Sepang over four seconds slower than expected?
Pirelli identified low grip, dust and an abrasive surface that increased tyre sliding and degradation. Friday’s benchmark was more than four seconds slower than its qualifying simulation reference, rather than four seconds slower than the 2017 race weekend.
Who was fastest in F1 practice at Sepang today?
Max Verstappen recorded Friday’s fastest lap with 1:37.520 in FP1. Charles Leclerc led FP2 with 1:37.528.
