Most teams will swap drivers for the afternoon session, though Red Bull and Williams have elected to give Liam Lawson and Carlos Sainz full days – meaning this will be their final running ahead of the season opener in Australia.
Russell wound up some four-tenths away from Hamilton, having admitted that Mercedes feels “different” without the veteran racer, while Carlos Sainz (just over seven-tenths back) completed the top-three places in his Williams.
READ MORE: Who’s driving on Day 2 of 2025 pre-season testing in Bahrain
Incidentally, Russell was one of the busiest drivers on-track around the light showers, cruising past another race distance before handing the W16 back to new teenage team mate Kimi Antonelli for the afternoon’s action.
Pierre Gasly placed fourth in his Alpine, from Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso and Racing Bulls’ Yuki Tsunoda, while Oscar Piastri took seventh for McLaren via an unusual incident with returning Sauber driver Nico Hulkenberg.
