Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc beat Red Bull's Max Verstappen into second spot in Australian Grand Prix practice on Friday – as Lewis Hamilton laboured and Alex Albon crashed his Williams spectacularly.
Reigning world champion Verstappen has won the first two races of the season and is aiming to match his record of 10 consecutive victories this weekend.
But Leclerc finished 0.381 seconds faster than his rival in Melbourne as his Ferrari teammate Carlos Sainz was third after returning from surgery on his appendix.
Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin were fourth and fifth, with Mercedes' George Russell in sixth.
Hamilton ended up down in 18th place and claimed there was “something was wrong” with his car.
Leclerc said afterwards: "It feels good for now. We had a positive day.
"It's a good start but we need to keep working very hard because I'm sure we will see some surprises tomorrow. I would say we are in a better position than in the first two races. However. Red Bull weren't pushing yet.
"I think they are still ahead but we may have our best shot since the beginning of the season."
Verstappen was unable to match Leclerc's pace and said: "It was alright. Ferrari is quick but there are a few more things we can fine-tune. Nothing crazy, nothing worrying, just need to fine-tune the car."
After a challenging day, Hamilton said: "I don't feel great. One of the worst sessions I've had for a long time. The car in P one felt the best it's ever felt and then it got worse and worse. We made some big changes on P two and it was tough."
Leclerc’s Ferrari teammate Sainz – back in his cockpit following British teenager Ollie Bearman’s stand-in drive in Saudi Arabia a fortnight ago – managed well to finish in third.
There was concern about how his body would fare after his surgery but he said he felt "reasonably comfortable".
"I will continue to take it step by step to make sure I come to qualifying and to the race in the best form possible," said the Spaniard.
“It’s been a couple of tough weeks leading to today and to be honest I’m very happy I could complete both sessions with reasonable comfort."
Williams driver Albon missed the second session after he lost control of his car on the exit of turn six and smashed into the safety wall.
The British-born Thai driver, 27, was taken to the medical centre for precautionary checks as the session was red-flagged to clear his destroyed machine.
Albon’s right-front wheel tore off his Williams, with debris littering the track.
He came to a standstill and was able to get out of his cockpit. “Sorry,” he said over the radio before he was taken away in the medical car.
He will drive teammate Logan Sargeant's car for the rest of the weekend as his chassis is too badly damaged to repair.
“Muchos debris,” said McLaren's Lando Norris. “Is he alright? It looked pretty large.”
Norris also had issues. He finished first in the opening session but was only ninth in the second.
Elsewhere, home favourite Oscar Piastri finished seventh, two positions ahead of Norris in the other McLaren, in front of a record 124,000-strong crowd.
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Dr Amal Khalid Alias revealed a recent case of a woman with daughters, who specifically wanted a boy.
A semen analysis of the father showed abnormal sperm so the couple required IVF.
Out of 21 eggs collected, six were unused leaving 15 suitable for IVF.
A specific procedure was used, called intracytoplasmic sperm injection where a single sperm cell is inserted into the egg.
On day three of the process, 14 embryos were biopsied for gender selection.
The next day, a pre-implantation genetic report revealed four normal male embryos, three female and seven abnormal samples.
Day five of the treatment saw two male embryos transferred to the patient.
The woman recorded a positive pregnancy test two weeks later.
The 12 breakaway clubs
England
Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur
Italy
AC Milan, Inter Milan, Juventus
Spain
Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Real Madrid
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In Full Flight: A Story of Africa and Atonement
John Heminway, Knopff
More coverage from the Future Forum
RESULTS
Catchweight 82kg
Piotr Kuberski (POL) beat Ahmed Saeb (IRQ) by decision.
Women’s bantamweight
Corinne Laframboise (CAN) beat Cornelia Holm (SWE) by unanimous decision.
Welterweight
Omar Hussein (PAL) beat Vitalii Stoian (UKR) by unanimous decision.
Welterweight
Josh Togo (LEB) beat Ali Dyusenov (UZB) by unanimous decision.
Flyweight
Isaac Pimentel (BRA) beat Delfin Nawen (PHI) TKO round-3.
Catchweight 80kg
Seb Eubank (GBR) beat Emad Hanbali (SYR) KO round 1.
Lightweight
Mohammad Yahya (UAE) beat Ramadan Noaman (EGY) TKO round 2.
Lightweight
Alan Omer (GER) beat Reydon Romero (PHI) submission 1.
Welterweight
Juho Valamaa (FIN) beat Ahmed Labban (LEB) by unanimous decision.
Featherweight
Elias Boudegzdame (ALG) beat Austin Arnett (USA) by unanimous decision.
Super heavyweight
Maciej Sosnowski (POL) beat Ibrahim El Sawi (EGY) by submission round 1.
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Xpanceo
Started: 2018
Founders: Roman Axelrod, Valentyn Volkov
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Smart contact lenses, augmented/virtual reality
Funding: $40 million
Investor: Opportunity Venture (Asia)
UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
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Key products and UAE prices
iPhone XS
With a 5.8-inch screen, it will be an advance version of the iPhone X. It will be dual sim and comes with better battery life, a faster processor and better camera. A new gold colour will be available.
Price: Dh4,229
iPhone XS Max
It is expected to be a grander version of the iPhone X with a 6.5-inch screen; an inch bigger than the screen of the iPhone 8 Plus.
Price: Dh4,649
iPhone XR
A low-cost version of the iPhone X with a 6.1-inch screen, it is expected to attract mass attention. According to industry experts, it is likely to have aluminium edges instead of stainless steel.
Price: Dh3,179
Apple Watch Series 4
More comprehensive health device with edge-to-edge displays that are more than 30 per cent bigger than displays on current models.
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
