Ferrari's Carlos Sainz topped final practice for the season opening Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix while title holder Max Verstappen of Red Bull was third on Friday.
Sainz clocked 1 minute 30.824 minutes in Sakhir, finishing .141 of a second ahead of Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso.
Threer-time reigning world champion Verstappen was .238 off the pace ahead of qualifying set for later Friday. It was his best practice result after coming sixth in both Thursday sessions.
Lewis Hamilton, who had topped second practice, was 12th in the start of his final year at Mercedes before a 2025 move to Ferrari where he is to replace Sainz.
The Bahrain race is on Saturday instead of the traditional Sunday slot, just like next week's Saudi GP.
That is because the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan starts on Sunday, March 10, which led to the Saudi race moved forward a day. The same happens in Bahrain because a full week must be in-between races.
