McLaren’s Lando Norris finished day one of Formula One’s pre-season test in Bahrain fastest. Fellow Briton George Russell was second for Mercedes, 0.157sec behind with defending champion Max Verstappen third for Red Bull.
Charles Leclerc was fourth for Ferrari, 0.448sec off Norris’s pace in Sakhir.
Lewis Hamilton, who drove in the morning session for Ferrari, was 13th but times in testing are notoriously unreliable as a guide to form.
The evening session was interrupted for an hour because of a power cut at the circuit, with an hour being added on to the running time.
05:02 PM GMT
DAY ONE ENDS - CLASSIFICATION
-
NOR 1:30.430 - 52 laps
-
RUS +0.157 - 68 laps
-
VER +0.244 - 74 laps
-
LEC +0.448 - 70 laps
-
SAI +0.525 - 67 laps
-
GAS +0.923 - 72 laps
-
ANT +0.998 - 78 laps
-
LAW +1.130 - 58 laps
-
ALB +1.143 - 63 laps
-
TSU +1.180 - 78 laps
-
HAD +1.201 - 75 laps
-
BOR +1.260 - 58 laps
-
HAM +1.404 - 70 laps
-
DOO +1.411 - 68 laps
-
ALO +1.444 - 46 laps
-
STR +1.519 - 41 laps
-
PIA +1.654 - 66 laps
-
HUL +1.739 - 55 laps
-
OCO +3.170 - 87 laps
-
BEA +5.092 - 72 laps
04:59 PM GMT
Norris out in the McLaren
And there is gallons of flo-vis paint on his car. He is going pretty slowly here (a constant speed test, perhaps?), the paint is all over his tyres, the halo and his left mirror is obscured by the green paint. He comes into the pits but still leads the way.
Into the final minute now...
04:53 PM GMT
Bortoleto moves up to 12th for Sauber
A decent lap. I don’t mind the car aesthetically (some have slated the livery) but would be surprised if they finish higher than 10th this season. They become Audi next year and need to be better in every regard than they were in 2024.
04:48 PM GMT
Four cars on track
Verstappen for Red Bull, Hadjar for Racing Bulls, Russell for Mercedes and Ocon for Haas. Haas still not bothered about setting a time to trouble the top 10. Even the top 15 in fairness.
04:35 PM GMT
News: Brown tells Horner to get over it
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has hit out at the “disappointing” booing of his driver Max Verstappen at last week’s glitzy Formula One season launch event at the O2 in London. But rival Zak Brown effectively told him to get over it, McLaren’s chief executive arguing that booing was “part of sport” and adding that he had seen “a lot worse”.
04:29 PM GMT
Here are the current standings and lap count
-
NOR - 46 laps
-
RUS - 52 laps
-
VER - 60 laps
-
LEC - 60 laps
-
SAI - 52 laps
-
GAS - 62 laps
-
ANT - 78 laps
-
LAW - 58 laps
-
ALB - 63 laps
-
TSU - 78 laps
-
HAD - 60 laps
-
HAM - 70 laps
-
DOO - 68 laps
-
ALO - 46 laps
-
PIA - 66 laps
-
HUL - 55 laps
-
STR - 28 laps
-
BOR - 44 laps
-
OCO - 68 laps
-
BEA - 72 laps
Not a tremendous amount of running from Aston Martin. Just 73 laps which is fewer than several drivers’ totals alone. A lot of laps (none of them that fast) from Haas. 138 in total but primarily on heavy fuel, it appears. They are just running their program and why not?
04:26 PM GMT
Into the final 35 minutes now
The top six runners (Norris, Russell, Verstappen, Leclerc, Sainz and Gasly) are all second-session drivers, which shows that these conditions are the best, partly. This is around the time that the race will be run, but that is not for a while yet. So the conditions are unlikely to be that similar.
04:16 PM GMT
Monaco news, following on from last week
The FIA World Motor Sport Council reviewed a proposal regarding the implementation of a mandatory 2-stop strategy (in both wet and dry conditions) for the Monaco GP, with the primary intent of improving the sporting spectacle of this Race given the notable difficulty in overtaking at this circuit.
Following recent discussions in the F1 Commission, a specific requirement for the Monaco GP has been approved mandating the use of at least three sets of tyres in the Race, with a minimum of two different tyre compounds to be used if it’s a dry race.
04:06 PM GMT
Russell dislodges Verstappen for second
Fastest final sector of the day for the Mercedes driver, 0.157sec off Leclerc’s time. Replays show he lost the rear end at turn four, though I am not 100 per cent sure that is from the same lap.
04:05 PM GMT
It’s P2 for Verstappen
0.244sec off Norris’s best lap time. Listen, I don’t think anyone wants to see Verstappen walk the championship like he has been able to do in the past. But F1 would be poorer if he was not at least in the picture for the drivers’ title. I would imagine that he will be this year, despite Red Bull’s struggles towards the end of last year.
04:02 PM GMT
Verstappen is back out on track
Some work was done on his car in the garage. He has done 46 laps and is currently in fourth, 0.869sec off Norris. I would expect him to set a decent lap time now as he is out on fresh medium tyres.
03:53 PM GMT
A moment for Leclerc at T13
He has not one, not two, but three bites at the cherry trying to get the front end to bite but runs wide. He does the same again the next lap. Not sure this Ferrari is the most compliant in its current guise.
03:47 PM GMT
The rain is definitely heavier now
Not enough for anyone to move onto the intermediate tyres, mind you.
03:45 PM GMT
Sainz moving up the order
He is now in fifth, 0.908sec off Norris’s fastest time. The new Williams looks decent with some white piping on its front end.
03:38 PM GMT
Norris moves fastest
Fastest first two sectors and then a decent middle sector to set a 1:30.430, nearly half a second faster than Leclerc.
03:34 PM GMT
UPDATE: Session extended by an hour
So we will be ending at 5pm GMT, which means there is 85 minutes, not 25 minutes remaining in this session.
Here is the statement from F1 and the FIA:
“Following the power outage during Bahrain Pre-Season Testing, the FIA, Formula 1, and the teams have agreed to extend this afternoon’s session by one hour to compensate for the time lost under the red flag. The session will now conclude at 20:00 local time.”
03:34 PM GMT
Hadjar moves significantly up the order
From 17th to 11th, 0.869sec off Leclerc’s fastest time.
03:30 PM GMT
Sainz has a weather report from inside his cockpit
“It’s starting to rain a bit,” he says on the radio.
03:27 PM GMT
A bit of a moment for Sainz in the Williams
03:26 PM GMT
Verstappen has improved since we resumed
He is now up to fourth, 0.421sec off Leclerc’s fastest lap. 40 laps on the board for him so far today. There was talk of an hour being added on to the end of the session because of that stoppage. I’d find that odd as any time lost in a practice or testing session is usually just... well, lost.
03:19 PM GMT
Some clarity, of sorts, on the cause
I’ve got a statement from the BIC on the power outage, blaming it on an “external substation failure”:
“At approximately 5pm today, a power outage caused by an external substation failure led to the afternoon session on track to be paused. Power has since been restored and the afternoon session has resumed. We appreciate everyone’s patience.”
03:17 PM GMT
Nine cars on the track at the moment
Only Stroll in the Aston Martin not out there at the moment.
03:10 PM GMT
SESSION RESUMES
A pretty lengthy delay there, more than an hour. Gasly is followed by Norris who has only completed 12 laps so far in the new McLaren.
03:10 PM GMT
We are ready to resume
The Alpine of Pierre Gasly waits at the end of the pit lane for the light to go green...
03:00 PM GMT
Update from the FIA
“The power, electronic systems and lights around the circuit are slowly coming back to normal, we expect to restart the session shortly.”
We currently have systems showing yellow flags, rather than red flags. That is a positive sign. A safety car is also circulating the track very slowly. I assume that is because its purpose is to check that the lights are on where they need to be.
57 minutes remain.
02:53 PM GMT
Don’t think we are too far away from action
I would imagine there will be quite a flurry once we get going. At turn 11 the floodlights are doing a good job of illuminating the track, but the gravel and run-off area is still a rather shadowy area.
02:46 PM GMT
Well, actually it’s a red flag still
It has flashed up green but not quite sure why. Either way, there are no cars on tracks and the floodlights are not yet fully on.
02:40 PM GMT
We technically have a green flag
Yet the floodlights haven’t yet fully powered up. So no action just yet. Also some rain about. 80 minutes remain.
And then there was light. Gradually everything is firing up again. First the lights in the paddock, then the media centre a few minutes later. I just saw some of the guys from the F1 movie and asked whether this was part of the film and Brad Pitt would abseil into the paddock any minute.
02:34 PM GMT
Looks like the power is back
Well, the lights are on in the Haas and Ferrari garages, anyway. Promising.
02:31 PM GMT
How it stands
May as well give you the order given the lack of action and electricity out there.
Just under 90 minutes left.
-
LEC 1:30.878 - 32 laps
-
RUS +0.204 - 20 laps
-
NOR +0.373 - 12 laps
-
GAS +0.475 - 26 laps
-
ANT +0.550 - 78 laps
-
VER +0.566 - 31 laps
-
LAW +0.682 - 58 laps
-
ALB +0.695 - 63 laps
-
TSU +0.732 - 78 laps
-
SAI +0.943 - 25 laps
-
HAM +0.956 - 70 laps
-
DOO +0.963 - 68 laps
-
ALO +0.996 - 46 laps
-
PIA +1.206 - 66 laps
-
HUL +1.291 - 55 laps
-
STR +1.454 - 21 laps
-
HAD +1.511 - 34 laps
-
OCO +3.445 - 36 laps
-
BEA +4.644 - 72 laps
-
BOR (NO TIME) - 17 laps
02:26 PM GMT
...and worsens still...
A few spots of rain now in the paddock. This feels positively apocalyptic.
02:23 PM GMT
The power cut worsens...
Strangely the WiFi survived for a few minutes after the power outage. But that, too, has gone now. Still a few overhead strip lights in the media centre. Not sure what they’re running off. A spokesperson for F1 says the circuit has back-up generators. They’re investigating what has caused this.
02:13 PM GMT
This might be a problem given the sun sets in 36 minutes
The last hour and a bit is usually run under the glare of many hundreds of floodlights.
“Strangely, the WiFi has survived,” Tom Cary informs me. That is strange as the internet is unreliable at the best of times in a lot of these media centres.
02:09 PM GMT
A power failure at the track: confirmed
A first in F1 (at least for me, in 18 years), the lights have just gone out in the media centre. The screens are all black. Not sure if it’s the same in the F1 garages but there’s a lot of running around going on out in the paddock. I’ll investigate.
02:05 PM GMT
RED FLAG
What is going on here? There is a shot of the Red Bull garage and there is strangely no light. Is there a power cut at the track or just in the Red Bull garage? Has that caused the red flag? I don’t know but stay tuned...
02:04 PM GMT
Just under two hours remain in the session
The top four times have all been set by drivers in the second session, with Verstappen making it five of the top six.
02:00 PM GMT
What are the odds for the drivers’ championship?
Lando Norris, Max Verstappen 5/2
Charles Leclerc 7/2
Lewis Hamilton 6/1
Oscar Piastri 9/1
George Russell 14/1
Liam Lawson, Kimi Antonelli 33/1
01:59 PM GMT
Norris is about to complete his first timed lap
He is on the medium C3 compound tyre. He has big snap of oversteer heading into turn 13 and that surely costs him a tenth or two. Anyway, he crosses the line third, 0.373sec down on Leclerc’s fastest time.
Still only nine laps for the Briton, though.
01:47 PM GMT
Leclerc moves fastest
His lap of 1:30.878 is 0.204sec faster than Russell as he crosses the line to start his 26th lap of the day. This time was set with a new set of medium tyres.
Norris is back out for McLaren, too, though only six laps under his belt.
01:32 PM GMT
Full order and lap count after 90 mins of second session
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RUS 1:31.082 - 16 laps
-
GAS +0.271 - 21 laps
-
ANT +0.346 - 78 laps
-
VER +0.362 - 18 laps
-
LEC +0.386 - 21 laps
-
LAW +0.478 - 58 laps
-
ALB +0.491 - 63 laps
-
TSU +0.528 - 78 laps
-
HAM +0.752 - 70 laps
-
DOO +0.759 - 68 laps
-
ALO +0.792 - 46 laps
-
PIA +1.002 - 66 laps
-
SAI +1.019 - 18 laps
-
HUL +1.087 - 55 laps
-
STR +1.263 - 13 laps
-
HAD +1.985 - 24 laps
-
OCO +3.416 - 24 laps
-
BEA +4.440 - 72 laps
-
BOR (NO TIME) - 12 laps
-
NOR (NO TIME) - 4 laps
01:18 PM GMT
Bearman with a keen eye
Just been to see Ollie Bearman down at the Haas garage, fresh out of the car this morning. He said it felt good, a step forward from last year, although it was his first time driving an F1 car in Bahrain, and the strong winds made things difficult.
I asked him whether he’d been able to look around at the other cars a bit, or was he just focused on his own programme, and he said he’d managed a cursory look at the other cars. His biggest takeaway? The changes Lewis Hamilton has made to his Ferrari steering wheel. “I’m a bit of a geek about stuff like that,” he confessed.
01:17 PM GMT
Russell moves fastest
That makes it a Mercedes 1-2, for what it’s worth (nothing). He is 0.346sec faster than his team-mate at this stage. Norris has managed to leave the pits and has completed four laps but not one of them has been timed.
01:02 PM GMT
17 laps in the first hour for Verstappen
Here is the lap count from those in this session:
Verstappen – 17
Gasly – 11
Ocon – 11
Leclerc – 10
Hadjar – 8
Bortoleto – 6
Russell – 4
Stroll – 4
Sainz – 3
Norris yet to emerge from the pits.
12:52 PM GMT
Gasly moves up into second
His lap time in the Alpine is just 0.015sec slower than Antonelli. Russell has left to the pits for the first time this session but still no sign of Norris in the McLaren nor Sainz in the Williams.
12:47 PM GMT
Hadjar spins
The Racing Bulls driver executes a perfect 360 going through the esses at the start of the second sector and carries on his (now not so) merry way. That will have made a mess of the tyres.
12:44 PM GMT
OK... Verstappen moves second
That did not take long. He is normally very good at finding the pace of the car in short order. His 1:31.444 is just 0.016sec off the fastest time of the day... with the usual caveats about lap times being unrepresentative and that it is difficult to gauge what is really going on.
12:35 PM GMT
Verstappen runs wide
Significantly, in fact. Nothing to worry about as he feels his way into the new car.
12:34 PM GMT
Lap times so far from the newcomers
This is relative to Antonelli’s fastest time of the day so far, a 1:31.428.
Verstappen (Red Bull) +1.916
Gasly (Alpine) +3.161
Hadjar (Racing Bulls) +5.456
Ocon (Haas), Bortoleto (Sauber) and Leclerc (Ferrari) have taken to the track but have not yet set a representative lap time.
12:27 PM GMT
Speaking of Verstappen
He has left the pits and is out on track.
12:27 PM GMT
Horner on ‘disappointing’ booing of Verstappen
Just had today’s press conferences. Horner was late arriving but the other team principals saved him a seat next to Zak Brown, which was clearly done on purpose. There was a bit of chat about the booing at the O2 last week (of both Horner and Verstappen). Verstappen’s father Jos, remember, has warned that his son might not attend if they held the event in London again next year.
Horner said it was “disappointing” the crowd would boo a four-time world champion regardless of whether he was on the home team or not. Brown, on the other hand, said a bit of “tribalism” (the FIA’s description of the booing, which it denounced in a statement last week) was no bad thing and cheering/booing was omnipresent in sport. The American added he’d seen a lot worse.
12:23 PM GMT
We have a car on track!
It’s the Racing Bull of Isack Hadjar.
12:12 PM GMT
10 minutes in and still no cars
The front end is off Verstappen’s Red Bull (or has not yet been put on). And George Russell is larking about in the pit-lane a reflective bomber jacket.
12:01 PM GMT
GREEN LIGHT!
The afternoon session in Bahrain has begun. Unlike in the morning I doubt we will see a great scramble of cars early on. For one, there are changes that every team needs to make as the drivers switch over.
11:39 AM GMT
Ferrari’s rear wing turning heads
Been into a few garages this morning. Ferrari’s rear wing attracting some attention, although one senior engineer at a leading team told me the biggest eye-opener for him was McLaren’s front suspension which he described as aggressive.
11:07 AM GMT
PM session starts at noon GMT
We will be back then.
11:00 AM GMT
MORNING SESSION ENDS - CLASSIFICATION
-
ANT 1:31.428 - 78 laps
-
LAW +0.132 - 58 laps
-
ALB +0.145 - 63 laps
-
TSU +0.182 - 76 laps
-
HAM +0.406 - 69 laps
-
DOO +0.413 - 68 laps
-
ALO +0.446 - 46 laps
-
PIA +0.656 - 64 laps
-
HUL +0.741 - 55 laps
-
BEA +4.094 - 72 laps
10:56 AM GMT
Nice to see a bit more blue on the McLaren this year
I think the blue and papaya worked very well seven years ago. I would like to see more of it.
10:53 AM GMT
A reminder who is up this afternoon for each team
Antonelli still leads the timesheets; Tsunoda leads the lap count with 74, though Antonelli only one behind.
McLaren
Norris
Ferrari
Leclerc
Red Bull
Verstappen
Mercedes
Russell
Aston Martin
Stroll
Alpine
Gasly
Haas
Ocon
Racing Bulls
Hadjar
Williams
Sainz
Sauber
Bortoleto
10:41 AM GMT
We are into the final 20 minutes of the morning session
Piastri had a little slide at turn two, the rear stepping out. That caused him to abandon his lap on a fresh set of medium tyres.
10:34 AM GMT
Antonelli has improved again
Only by a tenth or so. He also has 66 laps under his belt. Obviously lap times are almost meaningless at this point, but a fairly useful start for the young Italian.
A big challenge for the rookies this year is that testing is, obviously, in Bahrain yet the first race of the year is in Melbourne. In past years testing was in Bahrain and the first race was too, the following week. Albert Park too is a very different track and not one any of the rookies have driven in a grand prix weekend before, either.
10:28 AM GMT
Bearman focusing on something different from the others
His best time is currently more than four seconds slower than the fastest time as he crosses the line to start his 59th lap, having now completed a full race distance. The team had a much improved 2024 season after several years in the doldrums.
I have high hopes for Bearman this year. I think he could even be challenging Ocon from early on.
10:23 AM GMT
Lawson was out, before his spin, with flo-vis paint
The big question for Lawson is does his driving style work with a car that very much suits Max Verstappen’s approach. Or rather, it will if they have got it right this year. Last year’s mid-season problems were created by the Dutchman struggling with understeer, something he detests.
10:12 AM GMT
Cooler in Bahrain this year, in more ways than one
Much colder in Bahrain this year compared to last, both in terms of temperature and atmosphere. Twelve months ago, we were a few weeks into the Red Bull saga and it felt as if Christian Horner was on the precipice. Zak Brown and Toto Wolff were making life difficult for him.
Interesting to note that Brown and Horner are both in the FIA press conference this afternoon. Off track, it’s about 15C which obviously isn’t freezing but there’s a breeze here making it feel much colder. A lot of paddock people have underclubbed in terms of clothing and are feeling it.
10:10 AM GMT
We have a new leader
It is Andrea ‘Kimi’ Antonelli for Mercedes, who moves 0.145sec faster than Albon. Alonso onto 29 laps now, everyone else between 44 and 56 laps, so decent distances so far.
10:06 AM GMT
Big moment for Lawson
He loses it at turn three and goes into the gravel but not significantly enough for it to leave him beached there. Don’t know if he just got the power on too early whilst the car was still sideways. No he lost the rear end mid-way through the corner. That corner is ripe for that but that is not a mistake he will want to repeat.
10:02 AM GMT
Full standings with one hour remaining
-
ALB 1:31.573
-
LAW +0.001
-
HAM +0.261
-
DOO +0.268
-
ALO +0.301
-
TSU +0.336
-
PIA +0.511
-
HUL +0.596
-
ANT +0.625
-
BEA +4.046
09:53 AM GMT
Alonso is back out...
...well, he was back out. On a set of mediums he adds a couple of laps to his total. I would imagine he will be out again. Currently four cars out there: Bearman for Haas, Hulkenberg for Sauber, Lawson for Red Bull and Piastri for McLaren.
09:44 AM GMT
Current lap counts with 1h18min remaining
-
ALB - 39 laps
-
LAW - 39 laps
-
HAM - 41 laps
-
DOO - 42 laps
-
ALO - 19 laps
-
TSU - 48 laps
-
HUL - 42 laps
-
ANT - 45 laps
-
PIA - 33 laps
-
BEA - 43 laps
Not many laps from Alonso and Aston Martin, though there is some set-up work going on in the garage according to Sky’s Ted Kravitz.
09:38 AM GMT
Let’s talk about Antonelli...
The Italian is just 18 years old and replaces Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes. Hamilton’s storyline at Ferrari will obviously be the big story in 2025 but Antonelli’s is almost as fascinating. He goes up against a proven race winner in George Russell. That is a tough ask. Of course, he will not be expected to beat Russell next season, but the Briton will still be a benchmark. It is more likely the case that he will be quick yet erratic and error-prone, rather than distant. But F1 is a tough environment and plenty of exceptional talents have failed in the past.
Mercedes signed a teenage rookie because they did not want to let (another) potential Max Verstappen slip through their grasp, as the real one did a decade ago. But also because they rate him immensely. His first practice session for the team last year ended in the barriers at Monza, perhaps committing just a little too much.
He seems to be doing pretty solidly today, with his main target just being getting used to the car and being embedded in the team. In eighth and 41 laps on the board.
09:28 AM GMT
This doesn’t look good for Lawson and Red Bull
As he enters the pits something appears to detach from the rear.
It looks fairly large, whatever it is. I don’t think it was something he ran over because it would have split into a hundred pieces had he run over it.
09:25 AM GMT
Remember the days when gloss, not matte, paint was the norm?
Red Bull led the way on that one and the majority of the grid have followed, with the reason being that matte is apparently not as heavy. Aston Martin going with the sheen for now, at least.
Hamilton’s turn for a moment at turn four, as he loses the rear end a bit and dips a wheel into the gravel. Slightly more dramatic than Lawson’s a few laps ago.
09:18 AM GMT
Hamilton, currently third, on another run
He will not improve on this lap, however, and backs out in the final sector. Alexander Albon has gone quickest by the smallest of measurable margins (0.001sec) in his Williams.
09:13 AM GMT
1hr48min remaining in the session
Lawson gets a bit of oversteer at turn four and runs wide. That is a pretty common place to do that, especially on the harder tyres. There have been few dramas, even minor ones, so far today.
A few more laps on the board for Piastri, 24 now. the fewest of anyone but Alonso, who has not been seen for a while.
09:05 AM GMT
And just as I typed that out...
Lawson goes fatsest again for Red Bull with a 1:31.574, 0.3sec ahead of Alonso.
09:02 AM GMT
Full standings after two hours
-
ALO 1:31.874 - 19 laps
-
LAW +0.040 - 28 laps
-
HAM +0.176 - 31 laps
-
TSU +0.287 - 36 laps
-
ALB +0.325 - 25 laps
-
DOO +0.416 - 30 laps
-
HUL +0.515 - 30 laps
-
ANT +2.033 - 33 laps
-
PIA +2.353 - 18 laps
-
BEA +3.745 - 29 laps
08:59 AM GMT
Alonso now at the top
A 1:31.874 for the Spanish Aston Martin driver which is 0.040sec faster then Liam Lawson in second. After a terrific 2023 which brought eight podiums, 206 points and fourth in the standings, 2024 was a struggle. Relatively it was still a good season, but just 70 points and a best finish of fifth.
It is difficult to see Aston Martin improving much beyond those levels in 2025. You would probably think that he will wait until 2026 and see how competitive his car is then before making any decisions on his future.
08:41 AM GMT
Speaking of Liam Lawson...
He is now fastest with a 1:31.914 in the Red Bull. Being Max Verstappen’s team-mate is not the easiest job in F1 and someone of the calibre of Sergio Perez ended up getting in all sorts of trouble last year after a few decent seasons alongside him.
I do not think Red Bull have made the correct decision here. Firstly I would have put Carlos Sainz in that car as a first preference. Even then it would have made more sense to have Tsunoda alongside Verstappen. Then if he does not do well you can promote Lawson, if he has performed well enough.
I would be surprised if Lawson finishes the season at Red Bull, but I sincerely hope he does.
08:35 AM GMT
Six rookies in the field this year
Whether Liam Lawson is technically a rookie is debatable. There are three drivers who have never competed in an F1 race before: Bortoleto, Antonelli and Hadjar. And then there are three who have done ‘some’ races: Doohan (one), Bearman (three) and Lawson (11).
So far Bearman has done 25 laps, Lawson 22, Antonelli 18 and Doohan 24. Hadjar and Bortoleto will be in their cars in the afternoon session.
08:24 AM GMT
Order and lap count as we approach 1h30min into the session
-
HAM - 21 laps
-
ALB - 11 laps
-
ALO - 13 laps
-
LAW - 15 laps
-
HUL - 19 laps
-
DOO - 24 laps
-
TSU - 23 laps
-
PIA - 10 laps
-
ANT - 16 laps
-
BEA - 19 laps
Not too many laps on the board for McLaren yet.
08:12 AM GMT
I am not a fan of the new Ferrari livery
The white and blue HP branding just does not go with the Ferrari red.
Compare it to their beautiful 2022 livery (below).
Black, red, yellow and a bit of white is fine. Those are the colours, do not stray from them.
08:04 AM GMT
Hamilton goes fastest
A 1:32.621 in his Ferrari, with 14 laps on the board now. Just under three hours remain in the morning session. For reference, last year’s pole time was a 1:29.179 by Max Verstappen.
Replays show Hamilton getting a bit loose in the penultimate right-hander at turn 13. Nothing dramatic and not sure if it was on the lap that secured him top spot.
07:56 AM GMT
Tsunoda the first man to reach 20 laps
I think we will see some pretty hefty lap counts today. The Racing Bulls (no longer RB, having been AlphaTauri from 2020-2023 and Toro Rosso before that) car has a handsome livery this year.
07:47 AM GMT
A reminder, too of who is driving in 2025
07:46 AM GMT
Order and lap count after 50 minutes
-
ALO 1:33.031 - 9 laps
-
DOO +0.165 - 14 laps
-
TSU +0.545 - 17 laps
-
HUL +0.811 - 15 laps
-
HAM +2.055 - 11 laps
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ANT +2.056 - 9 laps
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LAW +2.397 - 10 laps
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BEA +2.588 - 11 laps
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PIA - 6 laps
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ALB - 6 laps
Apologies for the last update, the F1 timing data appears to be a bit glitchy at the moment and keeps freezing.
07:38 AM GMT
Leclerc caught napping... literally
07:37 AM GMT
Reliability issues?
Unlikely to have many significant ones today because these cars are very similar to 2024’s models. Unlike 2022 or 2014, for example. It is far from impossible, though I would be surprised if we see any significant stoppages. I doubt we will have just one pre-season test in 2026 when the regulations change significantly.
07:30 AM GMT
Jack Doohan has moved to the top for Alpine
His lap time of 1:33.196 faster than Nico Hulkenberg. Just the five laps for Hamilton so far.
Must remember not to call him after his father, motorbike racer Mick.
07:23 AM GMT
Lap count so far
Nobody in double figures yet but Tsunoda, with nine, has done the most laps of anyone. Albon of Williams has done four laps now too, so every team and half of the drivers, are on the board for 2025.
07:18 AM GMT
A reminder of the calendar for this year
07:14 AM GMT
Five laps for Hamilton so far on the hard tyres
Plenty of the customary aero rakes on the Ferrari, as with all the other cars.
07:12 AM GMT
We have some times on the board
They are worth almost nothing at this stage, though.
But here they are anyway:
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LAW 1:35.806
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HAM +1.193
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ANT +1.504
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TSU +5.660
07:07 AM GMT
It is only the Williams yet to leave the pits yet
Everyone else is out and has done at least one lap. Obviously at this early stage it is a glorified shakedown, just checking everything is working correctly and with no errors or big problems.
07:02 AM GMT
GREEN LIGHT: SESSION ONE IS GO
We are under way in Bahrain!
07:00 AM GMT
Antonelli is keen to go out
18 years old and making his debut for Mercedes this year. Why wouldn’t you be keen? Behind him are Fernando Alonso in the Aston Martin and Nico Hulkenberg in the Sauber.
06:59 AM GMT
Who is driving today?
McLaren
AM: Piastri PM: Norris
Ferrari
AM: Hamilton PM: Leclerc
Red Bull
AM: Lawson PM: Verstappen
Mercedes
AM: Antonelli PM: Russell
Aston Martin
AM: Alonso PM: Stroll
Alpine
AM: Doohan PM: Gasly
Haas
AM: Bearman PM: Ocon
Racing Bulls
AM: Tsunoda PM: Hadjar
Williams
AM: Albon PM: Sainz
Sauber
AM: Hulkenberg PM: Bortoleto
So all teams switching drivers at the break.
06:52 AM GMT
Good morning
A very warm welcome to our coverage for day one of Formula One’s 2025 pre-season test from the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir. Gone are the days of the official pre-season tests being at one place or another in Spain, so here we are in the Middle East again.
It is fair to say that there is a lot of anticipation around this season. Although Max Verstappen comfortably won his fourth championship in a row for Red Bull, by the mid-point in the season he did not have it all his own way by any means. In fact in the 14 races after the Austrian Grand Prix he won only twice and finished on the podium only another four times.
Unfortunately for the championship battle, Lando Norris could not make the most of what his McLaren offered and that, combined with a resurgence from Ferrari, meant Verstappen sealed the championship with rounds to spare.
However, the closeness of the field over the season in general bodes very well for 2025 when the regulations are largely the same. Last year there were seven multiple winners from the top four teams and just 77 points separated constructors’ champions McLaren from Red Bull in third.
Anyway, onto 2025. The only pre-season test is three days long taking place today, tomorrow and Friday. There will be a four-hour morning session, an hour break for lunch, and then a four-hour evening session on all three days.
Then, in two weeks’ time, it is the first race of the year with the Australian Grand Prix. There are, of course, many emerging and continuing storylines which will become apparent in the next few days.
The first session in Bahrain, though, begins at 7am GMT so there is not long to wait until we get going for 2025.
