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Sakhir (AP) - The Italians don't even have to dream of the third Ferrari pole in a row in Bahrain.

Sebastian Vettel (12th) and his Formula 1 stable rival Charles Leclerc (14th) were too far from the top at the end of the first day of training.

And there, at the very front, Lewis Hamilton positioned himself once again.

But the seven-time world champion from Mercedes also occupied the future tires before the start chase (3 p.m. / RTL and Sky).

The Pirelli test rubbers felt "not good," said Hamilton after the two training sessions on Friday.

"I would prefer to stick with the current tires."

Vettel shared this assessment.

"They are worse than the current tires," said the four-time world champion.

They would not improve overheating too quickly, but "worsen" the current problems.

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But 2021 is still three Grand Prix away.

At least until the end of the season, Hamilton wants to continue its dominance with victories.

The pole position in Sakhir wouldn't be bad for that.

The Briton has already secured first place on the grid twice in the stony desert.

"We still have work to do," said Hamilton.

Above all, Max Verstappen in the Red Bull presented himself as a serious competitor for the fastest lap during training.

His team mate Alex Albon, on the other hand, gave the mechanics an unexpected amount of work: The Thai demolished his company car after an accident in the last corner.

"I was a little surprised by the lack of grip," said Albon, who was unharmed.

"It's difficult at this point, everything happened very quickly."

It won't go too fast for Ferrari in qualifying - probably only with the elimination.

The engine is too weak for that.

A repeat of Leclerc's surprise pole in 2019 - the first of his career - is out of reach.

"On paper this is probably not the best route for us," said Vettel, who was there in 2018 fastest in the qualification.

"But we still have a little that we can improve".

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© dpa-infocom, dpa: 201127-99-492053 / 2

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