Charles Leclerc tops morning session despite SF-24 floor damage | 2024 F1 Bahrain test, day 2. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc ended the Thursday morning session at the top of the pile.

In the Thursday morning session, Charles Leclerc secured the top spot with a time of 1m31.750s on C3 tires, despite the limited running at the Sakhir circuit. As drivers settled into their long runs, the session was disrupted by red flags when Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari displaced a drain cover on the way to Turn 11. Both the Monegasque and Lewis Hamilton encountered the debris, prompting a quick display of red flags after two hours and 22 minutes of running. Following a 40-minute delay, it was announced that the session would not resume.

The Maranello team later confirmed damage to the floor of Charles Leclerc’s SF-24, and the affected part was promptly replaced.

At the same time, Red Bull’s Sergio Perez faced additional challenges, having completed the fewest laps (20) due to an earlier brake problem that kept him in the garage for over half an hour. Despite the setbacks, the Mexican managed to set a time of 1m32.879s, securing the fourth position. After Max Verstappen’s full-day drive on Wednesday, this marked Sergio Perez’s first official outing in the RB20. He is set to complete his test in the afternoon.

Lewis Hamilton also made his first appearance in testing and enjoyed a trouble-free session until striking the drain cover. He ended the session sixth fastest, focusing on long runs.

Oscar Piastri claimed the second-fastest time, following in the footsteps of teammate Lando Norris from day one, falling 0.578s short of Charles Leclerc. Logan Sargeant secured the third position for Williams, 0.828s off the pace, after the team allowed him some early push laps. Despite their efforts, no driver could match Max Verstappen’s impressive time from day one, leaving Charles Leclerc four tenths adrift of the pre-season benchmark.

The afternoon session has been rescheduled to start at 11:00 GMT (14:00 local time) and will conclude at the previously advertised time, resulting in a five-hour session instead of four to give teams and drivers the opportunity to recover the time lost in the morning session at the Sakhir circuit.