Kimi Antonelli set the pace in final practice at the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, going quickest in FP3 with a 1m36.302s lap at Sepang International Circuit. The Mercedes driver finished the session on top in hot conditions, with track temperatures in the mid-50s Celsius.
The result mattered because Mercedes arrived at final practice after what Bradley Lord described as the team’s most difficult Friday of the season in 2026. Overnight, Mercedes worked in the simulator to better understand how its upgrades were behaving, especially after Lord said they had improved medium- and high-speed corner performance but came at the expense of the low-speed turns.
Mercedes finds some direction after Friday struggles
That balance issue was the main reason the car looked inconsistent earlier in the weekend, and the final practice session suggested the team had at least narrowed the gap enough to compete near the front. In that sense, Antonelli’s lap was more than just a headline time; it offered Mercedes a clearer read on where the upgraded car stands before qualifying.
The session also reinforced how tight the picture remains at Sepang. Antonelli’s benchmark was enough to lead the field, but the broader context still points to a competitive qualifying session, with several front-running teams trying to extract more from the same hot and demanding conditions. For Mercedes, the question is whether the pace it found in FP3 can carry over when the pressure rises.
What it means before qualifying
Mercedes still has work to do, but final practice at least suggested the team made progress after a difficult Friday in Malaysia. With the upgrades under review and the conditions remaining extreme, the session gave the team a more useful reference point heading into qualifying at Sepang. For readers following the wider 2026 F1 calendar picture, Malaysia’s return has also been the subject of recent attention, including reports on a Sepang comeback and the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia from October 2-4, 2026.
