Kimi Raikkonen set the pace in first practice at the Bahrain Grand Prix while Mercedes where doing something different.
The Finn was 0.202 seconds faster than his teammate. Mercedes pair Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton were only 15th and 16th.
Williams’s Valtteri Bottas was third, followed by Toro Rosso’s Carlos Sainz Jr and Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo.
The second Toro Rosso of Max Verstappen was sixth, ahead of McLaren’s Fernando Alonso and Sauber’s Felipe Nasr.
| Pos. | Drivers | Teams | Time | Laps |
| 01. | 07 –  Kimi Raikkonen |
Scuderia Ferrari | 01:37.827 | 13 |
| 02. | 05 –  Sebastian Vettel |
Scuderia Ferrari | 01:37.827 | 12 |
| 03. | 77 – Valtteri Bottas |
Williams Martini Racing | 01:38.39 | 23 |
| 04. | 55 –  Carlos Sainz |
Scuderia Toro Rosso | 01:38.447 | 14 |
| 05. | 03 –  Daniel Ricciardo |
Red Bull Racing | 01:38.455 | 17 |
| 06. | 33 –  Max Verstappen |
Scuderia Toro Rosso | 01:38.504 | 22 |
| 07. | 14 – Fernando Alonso |
McLaren Honda | 01:38.598 | 18 |
| 08. | 40 –  Felipe Nasr |
Sauber F1 Team | 01:38.628 | 18 |
| 09. | 26 –  Daniil Kvyat |
Red Bull Racing | 01:38.661 | 17 |
| 10. | 19 – Felipe Massa |
Williams Martini Racing | 01:38.79 | 21 |
| 11. | 11 –  Sergio Perez |
Sahara Force India | 01:38.793 | 15 |
| 12. | 13 –  Pastor Maldonado |
Lotus F1 Team | 01:38.842 | 24 |
| 13. | 27 – Nico Hulkenberg |
Sahara Force India | 01:39.187 | 20 |
| 14. | 30 –  Jolyon Palmer |
Lotus F1 Team | 01:39.283 | 31 |
| 15. | 06 – Nico Rosberg |
Mercedes AMG Petronas | 01:39.293 | 23 |
| 16. | 44 – Lewis Hamilton |
Mercedes AMG Petronas | 01:39.532 | 22 |
| 17. | 09 –  Marcus Ericsson |
Sauber F1 Team | 01:39.534 | 22 |
| 18. | 28 – Will Stevens |
Manor F1 Team | 01:42.973 | 12 |
| 19. | 98 – Roberto Mehri |
Manor F1 Team | 01:44.265 | 15 |
| 20. | 22 – Jenson Button |
McLaren Honda | no time | 2 |
