F1 Bahrain final pre-season test: Top stories and team-by-team recaps from Day 1 as Russell goes fastest

George Russell posted the fastest lap on Day 1 of the final round of Bahrain's pre-season testing, which saw Charles Leclerc top the morning session, a red flag caused by a spin from Aston Martin's Lance Stroll and plenty of data collected across the grid.

George Russell went quickest of the day after taking the wheel in the afternoon | Credit: Formula One

The final round of pre-season testing is underway, and with just over two weeks until the lights go out for the season opener, Formula One’s 11 teams took to the Bahrain International Circuit to fine-tune their 2026 challengers for one of the sport’s most significant regulation changes to date.

The rare opportunity to run the cars over a second period of testing is set to span three days, from 18th to 20th February. The first of these dates saw Charles Leclerc top the morning session, while Russell led the afternoon running, the Mercedes driver setting the fastest lap of the day with a time of 1:33.459.

Top stories

Ferrari was the talk of the paddock on the first day of the final round of testing, bringing a curious new wing mechanism to the exhaust of the SF-26, which was absent at last week’s test.

The upgrade raised eyebrows for concerns that it may exceed the stipulated 60mm limit of any aerodynamic devices from the axle, but the Italian outfit have reportedly secured approval from the FIA by moving the differential as far back as possible and placing it right on the limit of what the regulations permit.

Additionally, it’s highly likely that Ferrari’s new contraption is not legally adaptable by other teams, and it would additionally mean re-designing their respective car concepts if they were to copy the Scuderia with this exhaust wing.

Ferrari showed significant improvements compared to last week | Credit: Formula One

Elsewhere on the grid, newcomers Cadillac suffered a delayed start to their running as Sergio Pérez was held back in the garage due to sensor issues, while Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar also missed out on a good chunk of track time after work had to be carried out on the car.

The only red flag of the day was caused by Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll during the afternoon session, after the AMR26 swerved into the gravel at Turn 11. Aston Martin continued to show many reasons for concern, Stroll’s crash being the only latest of many disappointments for the team carrying a Honda power unit under Adrian Newey’s leadership.

The starting procedure practice was also slightly different today, featuring two formation laps followed by the grid panels flashing blue for five seconds before the start. This test comes in view of concerns regarding race starts with the new hybrid power units.

Background and track conditions

The first 2026 test to have full, uninterrupted coverage began with several cars carrying the usual signs of testing, decked out in aero rakes and flow-vis paint.

Crucially, compared to last week’s round of testing, the 11 teams had access to all Pirelli compounds, including the C4 and C5 which weren’t available for the first test. The C2 and C3 compounds however were the most highly requested, chosen by all teams except Mercedes.

The morning session greeted the grid with clear skies and pleasant conditions, which gradually became hotter as the day wore on. By the time the afternoon session got underway, track temperatures had reached a scorching 40°C, slightly more representative of conditions for the Bahrain Grand Prix in April.

Team-by-team recaps

McLaren

Lando Norris took the wheel for the morning session, while Oscar Piastri hopped in for the second stretch.

Norris finished his day with the second fastest lap of the morning running, three tenths behind Leclerc who posted a 1:33.739. The reigning world champion completed 54 laps in the MCL40, while Piastri took over in the afternoon and posted the second quickest lap time of the day, 0.010s behind Russell, with 70 laps completed.

Oscar Piastri was pipped by Russell by just 0.01 seconds | Credit: Formula One

Mercedes

Mercedes were the only team to stick to the same compounds as last week, carrying out running on the C1, C2 and C3 tyres.

Kimi Antonelli went out first, continuing his pace from last week when he set the fastest overall time of the first round of Bahrain’s pre-season testing. The Italian youngster set the third quickest lap of the morning, completing 68 laps in the W17 which is still tipped to be the benchmark this year.

Russell then took the track, snagging the fastest time of the day from Leclerc as well as Piastri who had held it for a while, further making a statement of intent as he hopes to secure a championship with Mercedes this year.

Red Bull

Hadjar had full control of the day, Red Bull being the only team not to switch drivers between sessions today. The Milton Keynes outfit faced an interrupted morning session, and only managed 13 laps due to issues on the RB22.

For the afternoon running, Hadjar bolted on the C4 compound for a number of laps, and overall had a smoother second half of the day as he completed more running covered in flow-vis.

Ferrari

Leclerc set the fastest lap of the morning session, with a 1:33.739. This is also the team’s best lap time of the Bahrain pre-season test so far, set on a prototype C3 tyre.

Lewis Hamilton hopped in for the afternoon running, pumping in a number of laps while painted in flow-vis, racking up more data for the Scuderia in his second year in red.

Williams

Alex Albon completed Williams’ first outing of the day, with 55 laps and the fourth fastest time of the morning session. It was a productive yet quiet four hours of testing for Albon, who was followed by Carlos Sainz.

Williams were also one of four teams to test the super soft C5 compound, gathering crucial data for both the team and Pirelli.

Williams had a quiet but productive day of testing across both sessions | Credit: Formula One

Racing Bulls

The only rookie on this year’s grid, Arvid Lindblad, completed the most running of the morning session with 75 laps. The Briton also had several close moments on track, pushing the limits out of the final corner and almost finding the gravel traps on several occasions, but importantly managed to collect as many kilometres as possible for Racing Bulls.

Lawson took over in the afternoon, with his highlight of the day being a close side-by-side moment with Oliver Bearman after attempting to slide past the Haas but having to back off.

Aston Martin

It was another day of testing riddled with inconsistencies and hitches for the team that was poised to carry the most promise into 2026. With F1’s most lauded engineer Newey at the helm and a new partnership with Honda, the team had high expectations for the start of a new regulatory era, but their testing happenings so far have effectively dampened the mood around the Silverstone outfit.

Fernando Alonso completed 28 laps in the morning, experiencing a bumpy running as he went off-track through the final corner and kept losing the rear through the last sector.

Stroll’s spin into the gravel caused by an unbalanced car highlighted the team’s disappointing first day of the final round of testing.

Lance Stroll brought out the only red flag of the day after beaching the car at Turn 11 | Credit: Formula One

Though Stroll was able to rejoin the session, he could only complete a minimal number of laps, not boosting the team’s total laps recorded across both sessions — the team in severe need of more kilometres.

Haas

Esteban Ocon completed 65 laps in the morning, followed by Bearman with 42 laps for the American outfit.

Haas’ running was untroubled throughout the day, with more data being collected through smaller-sized aero rakes on Bearman’s car during the afternoon session.

Audi

Nico Hülkenberg logged in 49 laps first, followed by Gabriel Bortoleto with 71 laps.

The German driver experienced a slide through the gravel at one point, but otherwise had a smooth session before handing it over to Bortoleto who completed several race simulation runs for the new outfit.

Audi completed 120 laps on Day 1 | Credit: Formula One

Alpine

Pierre Gasly set the fifth fastest lap time of the morning with the Mercedes power unit, as the team begin to look more confident on track and are set to be firm competitors at the head of the mid-field.

Colapinto followed the French driver, sporting much bigger aero rakes than Haas for the afternoon session. 

Cadillac

Cadillac’s slow start to the day with Pérez hindered much of their plans for Day 1, the Mexican driver logging in the least laps across both sessions. Pérez also experienced quite a few lock-ups during his limited running, as the new team on the block continue to iron out the car for their F1 debut.

Cadillac had the least amount of running across the grid on Day 1 | Credit: Formula One

Valtteri Bottas also faced limited running in the afternoon, managing only 35 laps under the floodlights as Cadillac sort through reliability concerns during the final opportunity to fine-tune their cars before their next chance in Australia’s practice sessions.

Looking ahead

Only two more days remain before the teams head to Australia for the first round of the year from 6th to 8th March, with every second of on-track running pivotal to understanding and working with F1’s new regulations.

Day 2 will see Max Verstappen return to the track, Red Bull being the only team not to swap drivers between sessions across the first two days.

All eyes will also be on Ferrari to see whether they can challenge Mercedes at the top, and whether their fascinating new exhaust wing will bring considerable advantage to the Scuderia.