Max Verstappen leads opening morning of first pre-season test in Bahrain

Max Verstappen set the pace during the opening session at pre-season testing in Bahrain, the four-time World Champion topping the timesheets on Wednesday morning.

Off the back of the Barcelona Shakedown, the teams and drivers have returned to action for the first of two three-day tests held at the Bahrain International Circuit – with all 11 squads running this time after Williams did not participate in the Barcelona event.

With teams running one car throughout each day, the drivers have to share driving duties between them, meaning that some will swap over between the morning and afternoon sessions while others may get a full day at the wheel.

One of those set to spend all of Wednesday in the car is Verstappen, who was the first to hit the track in the Red Bull when the morning session began at 1000 local time, soon followed by Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto and the Racing Bulls of Arvid Lindblad.

By the end of the first half hour, 10 of the 11 teams had been out on track – many sporting aero rakes – while Alpine were the last to join the fray, with Franco Colapinto heading out in the A526.

Several laps had gone on the board when the first red flag was thrown, due to Colapinto having stopped by the side of the track. After the car was cleared, the action soon got back underway again as the teams continued to put their new challengers through their paces.

There were some small moments as the drivers tested out how much grip they had, with Lewis Hamilton experiencing a spin while Verstappen locked up into Turn 1 before returning to the track, the Red Bull driver sitting at the top of the timesheets for much of the session on a 1m 35.433s.

The track became busy as the morning’s running headed towards its close, leading to a few more lock-ups and wide moments. Some cars also took the chance to tail others, getting a taste of what following is like in the 2026 machines.

When the chequered flag fell, Verstappen remained on top via his earlier effort of 1m 35.433s, putting him 0.169s clear of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri. George Russell followed in third for Mercedes – six-tenths adrift of Verstappen – with Hamilton in fourth and the Haas of Esteban Ocon in fifth.

Lindblad and Williams’ Carlos Sainz placed in sixth and seventh, a pair who achieved the session’s highest lap counts of 75 and 77 respectively. Bortoleto classified in eighth place, while Cadillac’s Valtteri Bottas, the Aston Martin of Lance Stroll and Colapinto completed the timesheets.

The teams will now have a one-hour lunch break to reconvene before the afternoon session gets underway at 1500 local time, while most teams will swap drivers with the exception of Red Bull, Racing Bulls, Aston Martin and Haas.