Mclaren’s Lando Norris powered into the spotlight on Wednesday, blitzing the field to top the timesheets on the opening day of Formula 1 pre-season testing at the Bahrain International Circuit.
As teams shook off the winter rust, the day wasn’t without its quirks. A bizarre hour-long red flag brought everything to a standstill after a circuit-wide power cut plunged the track into chaos.
Despite the hiccup, it was smooth sailing for the teams’ reliability game. Not a single car sputtered to a stop on the asphalt, leaving engineers breathing easy.
Thursday’s Day Two, however, is shaping up to be a wild card. The FIA’s weather whisperers are predicting rain could crash the party, threatening to throw a soggy wrench into the teams’ carefully laid run plans.
Only the shrewd strategists at Aston Martin and Haas thought ahead, sneaking Pirelli’s Intermediate and Wet tyres into their arsenals.
The action kicks off from 10:00-14:00 and 15:00-19:00 local time—that’s 07:00-11:00 and 12:00-16:00 for UK fans tuning in three hours behind Bahrain.
Here is Thursday’s driver line-up to keep your eyes on.
| Team | AM | PM |
|---|---|---|
| McLaren | Piastri | Norris |
| Ferrari | Hamilton | Leclerc |
| Red Bull | Lawson | Lawson |
| Mercedes | Russell | Antonelli |
| Aston Martin | Alonso | Stroll |
| Alpine | Gasly | Doohan |
| Haas | Ocon | Bearman |
| Racing Bulls | Tsunoda | Hadjar |
| Williams | Sainz | Sainz |
| Kick Sauber | Hulkenberg | Bortoleto |
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