Lewis Hamilton is enjoying his new Ferrari as Carlos Sainz goes fastest in testing

SAKHIR, Bahrain (AP) — Lewis Hamilton said he's “really enjoying” driving his new Ferrari after he was narrowly beaten in Formula 1 testing results on Thursday by the driver he replaced at Ferrari, Carlos Sainz, Jr.

Hamilton's time from the morning session was the fastest for much of the day until new Williams driver Sainz beat it by .031 of a second.

Hamilton's Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc was third fastest, .083 off the pace, with a much larger gap to Mercedes' George Russell in fourth, 0.43 off Sainz's time.

Hamilton and Sainz were over a second faster than the best lap from the first day of testing Wednesday, which was set by Lando Norris for McLaren.

“I am really enjoying the car. We’re slowly bonding, I think,” Hamilton said in televised comments. “Today was a bit more of getting to explore my interaction with my engineer, but so far I really enjoy driving this car."

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur said he was satisfied with the team's work in testing.

“So far so good, but the first topic is reliability. It’s always a question at the start of the season, and it went well,” Vasseur said part-way through Thursday. He added it’s harder to tell a car’s true performance because it isn’t clear how much fuel competitors have in their cars for test runs.

Adding to the unseasonably cold conditions, the rare sight of light rain in Bahrain was an extra complication for teams trying to learn more about their new cars.

Expecting dry conditions in the desert, only two teams — Aston Martin and Haas — brought wet-weather tires for the test.

There is a third and final day of testing on Friday. The first race of the season is the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on March 16.

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain in action during a Formula One pre-season test at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Williams driver Carlos Sainz of Spain in action during a Formula One pre-season test at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Williams driver Carlos Sainz of Spain leaves the pit lane during a Formula One pre-season test at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain rides a scooter during a Formula One pre-season test at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Crew pushes Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain during a Formula One pre-season test at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain leaves the pit lane during a Formula One pre-season test at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Mercedes driver George Russell of Britain in action during a Formula One pre-season test at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain makes a pit stop during a Formula One pre-season test at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain drives through the pit lane during a Formula One pre-season test at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain in action during a Formula One pre-season test at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain leaves the pit lane during a Formula One pre-season test at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump in a Saturday evening social media post claimed that Mideast allies have reached the parameters of a deal to end the Iran war and said that he would hold off on ordering new strikes in the five-month old conflict for now.

Trump added that the emerging deal “would include the Immediate, Complete, and Total OPENING OF THE HORMUZ STRAIT, and an end to Iran’s nuclear threat.”

“Based on this request, I have agreed, for the future benefit of the WORLD and, likewise, the survival of a successful and prosperous Iran, to cancel the attack, subject to being able to rapidly make a DEAL,” Trump said.

He added that Israel has agreed to join the U.S. in the commitment to try to complete the agreement with Iran that would bring about an end to the war.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom’s de facto leader, in a phone call with President Donald Trump on Saturday raised concerns about the U.S. potentially escalating the conflict with Iran, according to a person familiar with the leaders’ discussion.

The discussion, which was first reported on by the news outlet Axios, comes as Trump weighs whether to carry out new strikes on Iran.

The Saudis, according to the person briefed on the substance of the call but not authorized to comment publicly, are concerned that if the U.S. targets Iran’s energy infrastructure or carries out massive strikes on other key infrastructure that Tehran could respond by carrying out attacks on the kingdom’s and other Gulf countries’ energy infrastructure.

The crown prince during Saturday’s call sought clarity from Trump on what potential new action he’s weighing to take against Iran, the person said.

A White House official, who was not authorized to comment publicly and requested anonymity, confirmed the leaders spoke on Saturday but did not offer any detail about the substance of their conversation.

Saudi Arabia earlier this week joined the U.S. in striking multiple logistics and weapons sites used by Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, but has been urging the U.S. and Iran to get back to the negotiating table to find an endgame to the five-month old conflict.

The crown prince also dispatched his brother, Saudi Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman, to Washington earlier this week for separate meetings with Trump and Vice President JD Vance to discuss Iran strategy.

The stakes for continued U.S. military action are high for Trump and his party as the conflict, unpopular among many Americans, has jolted the world economy just months before critical midterm elections in November.

The president has vowed to take retaliatory action after the U.S. military thwarted a surprise attack earlier this week by Iran on a U.S. base in Jordan.

Trump had told reporters on Friday that “we just want to win” in Iran and said the U.S. will hit Iran “very hard” until they can’t take it anymore. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt expressed frustration that Tehran had last month signed a memorandum of understanding with the U.S. on a truce but then quickly “broke it, shot at commercial ships, and killed American soldiers.”

On Saturday, the U.S. State Department issued new security alerts for Americans in 10 countries in the region to exercise heightened caution due to the escalating tensions with Iran.

The warnings — covering Bahrain, Israel, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates — urged U.S. citizens to prepare for the possibility of flight cancellations, temporary airspace closures and other travel disruptions.

FILE - President Donald Trump stands with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on his visit to the White House, Nov. 18, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)

President Donald Trump, center, walks from Air Force One at Morristown Municipal Airport in Morristown, N.J., Friday, July 31, 2026, from Camp David, the presidential retreat. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)