Two ninety-minute free practice sessions took place on the first day spent setting up the cars for the 8 Hours of Bahrain, the fourth round of the FIA WEC.
First session. The two 488 GTEs of AF Corse clocked the third and fourth fastest times in the first hour and a half of unofficial practice in the LMGTE Pro class, respectively with Rigon-Molina and Pier Guidi-Calado. The Italo-Spanish crew had to fit an extra set of tyres after a puncture, while the pair who secured the title here in 2017 concentrated their work on brake bias, one of the most delicate issues on this circuit. AF Corse no. 83 crewed by Perrodo-Collard-Nielsen, was the best of Maranello’s cars in the LMGTE Am class, finishing fifth. Grimes-Mowlem-Hollings of Red River Sport took seventh spot, two-tenths of a second faster than AF Corse's second car, the no. 54 driven by Fisichella-Flohr-Castellacci. The 488 GTE of MR Racing, with Ishikawa, Cozzolino and Beretta, closed the ranking.
Second session. The Ferraris finished in the bottom half of the rankings in the LMGTE Pro class in the second session, held under artificial light to familiarise the drivers with the conditions they will face in the second half of the race. Alessandro Pier Guidi and James Calado finished fourth after running out of fuel a few seconds before the end of the session, causing a Full Course Yellow, while Davide Rigon and Miguel Molina recorded the sixth-best time. The 488 GTE of AF Corse crewed by Flohr-Castellacci-Fisichella made excellent progress, finishing fourth in the LMGTE Am class, while Ishikawa-Cozzolino-Beretta came in sixth, a significant improvement on the first session. Tenth place went to the Red River Sport trio, four-tenths of a second faster than the Ferrari no. 83 of Perrodo-Collard-Nielsen.