Russell leads F1 drivers in Malaysia karting session

George Russell continued his strong form ahead of this weekend's Bahrain Grand Prix by topping a karting session involving several Formula 1 drivers in Malaysia.

Russell joined Carlos Sainz, Alex Albon, Oliver Bearman, Gabriel Bortoleto and Oscar Piastri for a karting session in Langkawi before the drivers travelled to Sepang for the Grand Prix weekend.

The Mercedes driver set the fastest lap with a time of 1:24.214, finishing ahead of former Formula 1 driver Roberto Merhi, who recorded 1:24.677. Sainz was third with 1:25.722.

Albon finished fourth, followed by Bearman, Bortoleto and Piastri. The session also included plenty of contact and incidents, with Russell later describing the race as chaotic.

Russell is heading into the Malaysian weekend in particularly good form after winning the Azerbaijan Grand Prix last weekend. The Mercedes driver is currently second in the championship standings behind teammate Kimi Antonelli.

The Bahrain Grand Prix was relocated to Sepang because of the ongoing situation in the Middle East. It will be the first Formula 1 race at the Malaysian circuit since 2017. Russell has never raced there in Formula 1, although he has fond memories of driving the track on PlayStation as a child.