Verstappen sets pace in opening practice in Sepang

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SEPANG, Malaysia, Oct 2 : Red Bull's Max Verstappen topped Friday's opening Formula One practice session for the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, clocking the fastest time as the four-times world champion eyes his first victory of the season.

The Dutchman lapped the 5.543-km circuit in 1 minute, 37.520 seconds, with Mercedes driver George Russell trailing by 0.383 seconds at the Sepang International Circuit, which is hosting the Bahrain race due to the conflict in the Middle East.

Verstappen's team mate Isack Hadjar claimed third spot, while Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was the only other driver to post a lap time within one second of the Red Bull pacesetter's best effort.

"It's early to get excited because it's only FP1 but Max and Isack did a good job in very difficult conditions - they got into a rhythm pretty quickly," Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies told Sky Sports F1.

"Everyone is fighting with the car because of the extreme heat so it doesn't feel good for anyone."

Verstappen won the last Malaysian Grand Prix in 2017 before it dropped off the F1 calendar, with the government saying it could no longer justify the costs.

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