Nico Rosberg goes two-for-two and was fastest again ahead of Lewis Hamilton for Mercedes, but it was Jenson Button taking third place for McLaren in a nice surprise during the evening’s second practice in Bahrain.

Meanwhile, Ferrari faced more reliability issues, this time in the form of a misplaced wheel nut, and Sebastian Vettel was forced to stop on track. He confirmed the reason due to a rear-left corner nut "was not on".

Also with troubles were Haas F1, as Romain Grosjean ran over the Turn 13 kerbs and his front wing tucked underneath him. He was able to carry on but there were also reports of smoke coming from the rear of his car.

McLaren finished the day third - but is it real progress or a mirage? Button was a great 3rd, but Vandoorne could only be 11th. It sure was a promising evening for the team and better keep an eye on them tomorrow for FP3 and qualifying in Bahrain.