Alonso leaves a good impression in Bahrain and Hamilton shows off his new Ferrari

Fernando Alonso finished second, leading for much of the day, on Wednesday at the end of the first two hours of the Bahrain test with a time of 1m31s874, during the first day of pre-season training.

During these first two hours of the morning, the teams decided which driver would ride now and who would do so in the afternoon session.

Eddie Lawson, a rookie driver with Red Bull, took the gap left by Mexican Sergio 'Checo' Pérez and remained second, 0.40 seconds behind Fernando Alonso, until shortly after the second hour had passed, on hard tyres, he managed to move into first place with a time of 1m31s574.

This time is less than two tenths of a second off the best lap in a Grand Prix race last season, set by Max Verstappen (Red Bull) with 1m31s447. Other rookie drivers such as Italian Andrea Kimi Antonelli, with Mercedes, have also started their stints.

Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton made his debut with Ferrari, also attracting a lot of attention. The Englishman is seeking his eighth title with the red car at the age of 40 after 12 years at Mercedes, the team with which he won six of his seven world championships.