Max Verstappen and Red Bull dominated the final day of F1 pre-season testing in Bahrain, making headlines.

After completing pre-season test just about a second ahead at the top of the timesheets, Red Bull’s revised RB18 still has pace in hand, according to Max Verstappen.

For Saturday’s racetrack activity in Bahrain, Red Bull unveiled a drastically upgraded version of their 2022 car, with Sergio Perez leading the morning session and Max Verstappen leading the afternoon session.

Verstappen’s time of 1:31.720 on the Soft C5 tyre was three-quarters of a second faster than Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who was running on the Soft C4 rubber.

As the test finally ended, Verstappen had nothing but praise for Red Bull’s pre-season preparation – and the updated RB18.

“The car felt good, also in terms of balance – the latter is very important,” Verstappen told his official website after Saturday’s running.

“We were able to finish our test programme, which is always positive.

“The new parts we had on the car today worked well, as hoped. We learned a lot about the car [during] these days and made it faster – exactly what our goal was.”

Red Bull will have more to say at the start of the Formula One season

Verstappen made it apparent that Red Bull can still go faster, despite much speculation about which teams have gotten things right under F1’s new restrictions.

“Going faster each time is the natural progression throughout the day, also because we are trying out different tyres with a view to the Grand Prix next week,” said Verstappen, having prompted cheers in the Red Bull garage with his late-day improvements.

“Nobody has shown the back of their tongue yet, including us.”

“I think this season is not only about how you stand in the first three races, but how quickly you can develop,” Verstappen remarked of the next campaign.

“Everything is new and there is a lot to learn about the car, so we have to keep getting faster during the season and keep making progress.”

Earlier in the day, Red Bull team head Christian Horner pointed out Ferrari and McLaren as potential rivals, while also predicting Mercedes to accelerate in the season opening next weekend.

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F1, F1 2022, Formula 1, Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen, Red Bull