Ferrari stay dominant with Leclerc, Vettel topping Practice Three at F1 Bahrain GP 2019

 § Latifi claims comfortable win in F2 season-opener

§ Besler wins race, Al Zubair crowned champion in GT3 Cup

§ Fans to meet F1 stars in Autograph Session Sunday

§ Two hundred valuable prizes in ’10 Every 10’ raffle

Ferrari continued their dominance at Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) on Saturday as Charles Leclerc set the pace in Formula 1 Practice Three at the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2019.

The Monegasque talent had a best lap of 1m 29.569s as he led teammate Sebastian Vettel to the top of the timesheet.

Vettel was just 0.169s behind as the pair of Prancing Horses maintained their impressive form for the third successive practice session. They now appear to be favourites to claim pole position later on Saturday evening in Qualifying.

Leclerc’s best time was more than half-a-second quicker than the best lap he posted to top Practice One, although it did not match Vettel’s fastest mark in Practice Two which took place under cooler conditions.

Classified behind the Ferrari leaders was Mercedes ace Lewis Hamilton, who was 0.765s back. Teammate Bottas was fourth 0.820s adrift, while Romain Grosjean impressed after steering Haas to fifth with a best lap 1.249s from Leclerc.

Renault’s Nico Hulkenberg (+1.341s) ranked sixth, McLaren’s 19-year-old rookie Lando Norris (+1.386s) was seventh and Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen (+1.390s) finished eighth.

McLaren’s Carlos Sainz (+1.396s) and Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat (+1.604s) rounded out the top 10.

The Formula 1 field returns to the track for Qualifying on Saturday at 6pm.

Latifi claims comfortable win in Formula 2 season-opener 

Nicholas Latifi became the first winner of the 2019 FIA Formula 2 Championship after taking the chequered flag in the Feature Race, held Saturday in support of the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix.

Latifi started from fourth place but was able to take over as the leader early on. The Williams test driver then lost the advantage but regained it on Lap 23, and did well to hold on and stretch his lead until the chequered flag.

The Canadian = won in a total race time of 59m 19.517s in his DAMS car.

He was a comfortable 8.744s ahead of runner-up Luca Ghiotto from Italy, who competes with UNI-Virtuosi Racing.

Latifi’s DAMS partner Sergio Sette Camara from Brazil came third 14.826s adrift.

Anthoine Hubert of Arden, Louis Deletraz of Carlin, Nyck De Vries of ART Grand Prix, Jack Aitken of Campos Racing and Mick Schumacher of Prema Racing rounded out the top eight.

Schumacher claimed his finishing position late in the race, and it was a crucial move as it earned him pole position for Sunday’s Sprint, as per the series’ reverse grid rule.

The Sprint is scheduled for a 2.15pm start Sunday.

Besler wins race as Al Zubair clinches Porsche GT3 2019 title 

Berkay Besler took the race victory while Al Faisal Al Zubair secured the drivers’ title after the opening sprint in the season-ending round of the 2018/2019 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East, being held in support of the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix at Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) in Sakhir.

Besler was on the wining end of a tight battle with Dutch driver Dylan Pereira.

Al Zubair, on the other hand, finished eighth overall but it earned him enough points to claim the championship for the second successive year.

This season marks the 10th anniversary of the BIC-based series.

Besler enjoyed a gap of only 0.868s ahead of Pereira at the end. The Turk triumphed in a total race time of 20m 45.973s in the 10-lap sprint.

JB Simmenauer from France claimed the final step on the overall podium after finishing 5.871s behind first place.

All three drivers were also on the Pro class podium.

The ProAm category saw Saul Hack from South Africa take the win, with Leon Koehler of Germany and Shaikh Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa of Bahrain joining him on the podium.

The Am category saw Michael Knutzon of Sweden continue to dominate the weekend’s events. He was followed by Denmark’s Michael Sauer and Austria’s Michael Doppelmayr on the class podium.

Pole-sitter Tio Ellinas was given a 30-second time penalty for a false start.

The weekend’s second race, which will mark the season finale, will be held Sunday at 3.340pm. it will also be held over 10 laps or 25 minutes. Ellinas is on pole once again.

Fans to meet Formula 1 stars in Drivers’ Autograph Session Sunday 

Bahrain International Circuit will be giving motorsport fans a chance to get up close and personal with their favourite Formula 1 drivers in Sunday’s Drivers’ Autograph Session right before the start of the 57-lap Bahrain Grand Prix.

The Autograph Session will take place in the Formula 1 Village vending area next to the Main Stage. It will be held from 2pm to 4pm, and fans are advised to line up as early as possible so as not to miss out on a dream chance to meet their favourite stars.

Lucky fans will be able to take pictures with the drivers and share a moment or two.

All those with tickets to this year’s Bahrain Grand Prix will be able to attend Sunday’s Autograph Session.

BIC to give away 200 valuable prizes in ’10 Every 10’ draw in Main Grandstand 

Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) will be giving away 200 valuable prizes Sunday (Editor’s note: March 31) before and during the Bahrain Grand Prix.

Those seated along the 10,500-capacity Main Grandstand will all have a chance to emerge as one of the many lucky winners in BIC’s “10 Every 10” raffle.

All they have to do is be at their allotted seats from 4.45pm onwards as well as throughout the 57-lap night race, which flags off at 6.10pm. Ten random winners will be announced every 10 minutes during this period, making for plenty of additional excitement amongst those in attendance.

Fans are advised to be at their seats on time as winners will be identified by their seat numbers. They will be announced and located by BIC staff, so they must be in their seat in order to claim their prize.

This year’s list of highly sought-after prizes features brand new, high-end electronic devices, many of which have just hit the market. They include iPhone XS Max, XS, and XR smartphones; Apple Watches; iPads; Samsung Galaxy S10s and Note 9s; plus so much more.

Race-goers must not miss out on this wonderful opportunity so they must make sure that they are at their Main Grandstand seat for the duration of the raffle. Only those with Main Grandstand tickets can take part.