Two-time champion Fernando Alonso continued to set the pace at the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix on Saturday when he outpaced Max Verstappen in an intriguing third and final practice. 

The 41-year-old Spaniard, revelling in the performance of his vastly-improved Aston Martin car, clocked a best lap of 1 minute 32.340 seconds to edge Red Bull’s two-time defending world champion by 0.005 seconds. The Dutchman’s Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez was third.