Lando Norris set the fastest time on the opening day of the Bahrain Formula 1 preseason testing, recording a lap of 1m34.669s in the McLaren MCL40 designed by Rob Marshall. His performance positioned him ahead of the field, including Max Verstappen, by a margin of 0.129 seconds.
Verstappen’s Consistency and Red Bull’s Reliability
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen logged the most laps during the day, completing 136 circuits as a precautionary measure after teammate Isack Hadjar’s crash in Barcelona. Verstappen was fastest in the morning session and remained consistently near the top throughout the day. The new Red Bull-Ford power unit displayed strong reliability, although Arvind Lindbad’s car encountered a fluid leak, causing downtime for the Racing Bulls team.
Other Top Performers at the Bahrain Test
Charles Leclerc secured third place in the Ferrari #16, trailing Norris by 0.521 seconds. Esteban Ocon finished fourth for Haas-Ferrari, about 0.909 seconds behind the pace-setter. Oscar Piastri completed the top five in McLaren’s #81 car, 0.933 seconds slower than Norris.
Challenges Faced by Several Teams
In contrast to McLaren and Red Bull, Aston Martin struggled to put their cars on track, with Lance Stroll limited to 36 laps and Arvind Lindbad sidelined after the car’s leak issue. Colapinto also faced limited track time after his car stopped on the circuit during the morning session. Alpine’s Gasly managed a more productive afternoon session, adding valuable laps.
High Lap Counts for Some Teams Encourage Data Collection
Williams and Cadillac showed strong mileage, completing 144 and 102 laps respectively, which should provide a solid data foundation moving forward. Teams will now focus on analyzing the information both at the track and in their factories to refine car setups for upcoming sessions as they continue to explore the capabilities of this year’s machinery.
