Formula 1: Mercedes struggles as Charles Leclerc beats Max Verstappen

Charles Leclerc has won the Bahrain pre-season to lead in the drivers’ championship.

Also on Friday, April 8, Charles Leclerc was ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in practice at the Australian Grand Prix.

The Monacan ended the session 0.245 seconds to lead Max, who could have been faster in the absence of traffic and a few errors.

Mercedes drivers George Russell and Lewis Hamilton managed 11th and 13th spots respectively.

Mercedes’ seven-time champion, Lewis Hamilton said, it’s been “a difficult session”.

“Nothing we change on the car makes a difference at the moment,” Hamilton said, “so that’s the difficult thing.

“It’s just a tricky car. You’re trying to push and catch and even when you do a decent lap it’s 1.2 seconds down.”