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Max Verstappen has swiftly shut down claims made by Lewis Hamilton and George Russell suggesting that Mercedes will be out of contention to win the Bahrain Grand Prix next Sunday. The Red Bull man may feel quietly confident after a promising final day of pre-season testing which saw him top the time-sheets.

Two separate three-day tests in Barcelona and Bahrain have now come and gone to give fans subtle hints about who could be fighting out in front in 2022.

Hamilton will be out for revenge after painfully missing out on an eighth world title back in December, while Verstappen will be keen to prove that FIA race director Michael Masi was not the reason for his Drivers' Championship triumph last year.

There has been some concern from the Silver Arrows' camp over a troubled few days of pre-season tests.

Having banked