Bahrain F1 pre-season test: Schedule and line-ups for week 2

Formula 1 teams will be back on track with their new-generation cars on Wednesday in Bahrain for their second and final stint of pre-season testing before the 2026 season roars into life in Melbourne next month.

The week’s action is less about experimentation and more about revelation: upgrades will surface, true pace will begin to peek through, and the carefully rehearsed secrecy of the first test will start to crack.

For the sport’s contenders, this is the last controlled environment before the pressure of championship points arrives.

For fans, it is the closest thing to a dress rehearsal – three days where every lap, every setup change, and every driver swap could hint at the competitive order to come.

What was tentative last week now turns decisive. No more feeling out the machinery; this is the moment engineers and drivers begin chasing performance rather than just understanding it.

Lights, Cameras, Data

Unlike last week’s muted broadcast presence, the second Bahrain test comes with full television coverage. For viewers in the UK, every on-track moment will be carried live on Sky Sports F1, turning what was once an insider’s exercise into a fully consumable spectacle.

Morning sessions are set to air from 06:50 to 11:05 GMT, with afternoon running broadcast live from 11:55 to 16:10 GMT.

Each evening concludes with a dedicated “Testing Wrap” programme, offering analysis, interviews and technical breakdowns – the kind of deep dives that transform lap times into narratives.

Fans worldwide can also follow proceedings through F1 TV, ensuring the global audience can watch the sport’s technical chess match unfold in real time.

Testing never reveals everything – it rarely even tells the whole truth – but it does whisper enough hints to fuel debate, optimism and anxiety in equal measure. In Bahrain this week, the stopwatch will speak, and the season’s first storylines will begin to write themselves.

Provisional driver line-ups for Bahrain F1 pre-season test - Week 2