F1 news LIVE: Bahrain Grand Prix practice as Max Verstappen says F1 ‘does not need to heal’

LIVE – Updated at 09:29

The Formula 1 2022 season is here, it’s practice day ahead of this weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix to open up the year’s racing. Max Verstappen is the defending champion after a thrilling finale to the 2021 F1 season with Lewis Hamilton gunning to dethrone the Dutch-Belgian driver and break the record to land his eighth world title. The controversy of Abu Dhabi simmers as we approach the first race of the year, while the new rules and regulations add a wildcard, with Ferrari and McLaren ready to compete with favourites Mercedes and Red Bull. All the talking has been done now, with the Netflix series Drive to Survive adding extra spice to the off-season, with Verstappen not a fan and maintaining the sport does not “need to heal”.

In addition to new rules and regulations surrounding the cars, the fallout from Abu Dhabi led to more changes to the F1 hierarchy as race director Michael Masi was sacked, after Toto Wolff’s very public argument after watching Verstappen deny Hamilton and the Silver Arrows the title in that exhilarating final lap. A report into those events is expected to be published this weekend, with Masi operating in a new role after freestyling with the rules under extreme pressure at Yas Marina.

The game of bluff between the teams and drivers after testing in Barcelona and Bahrain finally ends, with Hamilton adamant Mercedes’ new W13 car is not in a position to compete for wins: “I’m sure everyone can figure that out - we are not the quickest at the moment,” he said. “Ferrari look to be the quickest, then perhaps Red Bull, and then maybe us or maybe McLaren, I don’t know. But we’re currently not at the top.” Follow all the build-up and practice updates from Bahrain ahead of the start