The 41-year-old double world champion, fastest in Sakhir on Friday, topped the time sheets again ahead of qualifying later on Saturday. Alonso saw off world champion Verstappen by just 0.005 seconds with Sergio Perez a tenth back in the other Red Bull.
Lewis Hamilton finished fourth ahead of Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc and Mercedes’ George Russell. On Friday, Hamilton said Mercedes were on the “wrong track” and had fallen further behind their rivals after a disappointing 2022.
The first qualifying session of the season started at 3pm (GMT) at the Bahrain Internaional Circuit.
