F1 Bahrain test: Nicholas Latifi endures nightmare session as illness dogs Daniel Ricciardo preparations

McLaren driver Daniel Ricciardo was forced to miss a second day of testing in Bahrain due to illness.

Ricciardo had already missed the opening day of testing in Bahrain on Thursday and his preparations were further disrupted on Friday.

As a result, Lando Norris once again drove the McLaren as the team looks to get ready for the season opener next weekend.

In a statement on Friday morning, McLaren said: “In a change to our planned programme, Lando will continue driving the MCL36 this morning.

“Daniel began feeling unwell yesterday morning, and while showing signs of improvement, the team will continue to assess him before he resumes driving duties.

“Daniel has had several precautionary Covid-19 tests during this time, which have been negative throughout.”

The session in Bahrain on Friday morning turned out to be a dramatic one, with Williams’ Nicholas Latifi spinning off at Turn 12 due to a problem with his rear brakes.

Latifi got out of the car to see smoke billowing from the back wheels and there was fire inside the rims.

The Williams driver was forced to use an extinguisher to put out the fire and it ended his session early.

“Following a fire on Nicholas’ car, the team will assess the damage and look to understand the cause of the issue prior to any further running,” said Williams in a statement.

Sebastian Vettel also had issues in his Aston Martin after his car came to a halt on the track. It ended the German’s session prematurely, with his car having to be collected.

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