Leclerc sets the pace as 2026 Formula 1 pre-season testing closes in Bahrain

Leclerc's test-topping lap caps the final day in Sakhir

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc closed the second and final 2026 pre-season test at the Bahrain International Circuit with the fastest time of all six days, a 1m31.992s, finishing the week as the only driver below the 1m32s mark. The FIA's report records that Leclerc led the final day throughout, first setting 1m32.655s on C3 compound Pirelli tyres before stepping to the softer C4 compound to post his test best. He ended the day 0.879s clear of McLaren's Lando Norris, with Red Bull's Max Verstappen third, according to Formula1.com's report from the circuit. ¹⁴

The FIA's official final-day classification listed Leclerc (132 laps) ahead of Norris, who managed 47 laps in the afternoon, Verstappen (65), George Russell (82) and Pierre Gasly (118). Oliver Bearman, Gabriel Bortoleto, Kimi Antonelli, rookie Arvid Lindblad and Carlos Sainz completed the top 10, with Lindblad's 165 laps the highest individual tally of the day. Lance Stroll was classified 17th without a timed lap, and five drivers did not participate as their team mates completed the day's programme. ¹⁴

Both the FIA and Formula1.com stress the same caveat that applies to any test timesheet: these are testing lap times, not competitive rankings. Leclerc himself said in Ferrari's post-test release that it was difficult to understand where teams really stood because rivals were hiding their true form, and that the focus should not be too heavily on lap times ahead of the first race. Those team and driver comments were carried by grandprix247.com in its teams and drivers report from Sakhir. ¹³⁴

Overall test order: Antonelli second quickest, Norris fourth

Across the whole test, the FIA's summary places Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli second quickest overall on a 1m32.803s set on C3 tyres on Day 2, with McLaren's Oscar Piastri third on a Day 2 time of 1:32.861. Norris was the fourth quickest driver of the test despite missing the first two hours of the final day, while Verstappen's final-day best of 1:33.109s on Pirelli's prototype tyres left him fifth across the test. Piastri ended Day 3 in 11th place on a 1:34.352s. ⁴

The overall picture across the week shifted markedly. On the opening day of the second test, Russell topped the timesheets for Mercedes ahead of Piastri and Leclerc, according to Formula1.com's coverage relayed on its official Telegram channel. The Race's opening-day analysis, also relayed there, noted the field was closing up, with the gap from fastest to slowest on Day 1 at 3.339s, and suggested the worst fears about the new rules overhaul creating large performance gaps would not be realised, while cautioning the spread would likely widen again in Australia. ²

The Race's long-run analysis from the test's opening day suggested Mercedes may have decisively reclaimed the 'team to beat' tag, with Russell and Antonelli setting the strongest and most consistent stint averages in representative conditions, though it cautioned that claiming so definitively would be premature given Verstappen was absent from the Red Bull that day and Ferrari had problems in the second session. ESPN's live coverage likewise noted Russell and Antonelli had set the pace earlier in the week, with McLaren and Ferrari also providing glimpses of theirs, and that testing form is almost impossible to read from lap times alone. ²⁵

Aston Martin's limited run and Mercedes' stoppage disrupt Day 3

Aston Martin's week ended on a low note. Honda had confirmed via a statement earlier on Friday that the Silverstone team would have a very limited run plan due to a battery-related issue curtailing Fernando Alonso's running on Thursday, Formula1.com reported. Aston Martin subsequently confirmed it had completed its programme with just over two hours of the session remaining, Stroll having completed only six untimed laps. The FIA's report attributes the shortfall to an engine parts shortage stemming from Alonso's Thursday battery issues, leaving the team unable to run further. ¹⁴

Mercedes' final day was also disrupted. Antonelli halted on track in the morning with a loss of pneumatic pressure, bringing out red flags and necessitating a power unit change before Russell took over for the afternoon, the FIA reported. Mercedes' own release, carried by grandprix247.com, confirmed Antonelli completed 49 laps of mainly set-up work before the stoppage, with Russell adding 82 laps in the afternoon and finishing fourth on the timing screens. Trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin acknowledged the day was not a perfect one, while Antonelli said several reliability issues in Bahrain had limited his mileage. ³⁴

McLaren also hit trouble on Friday. The team disclosed, in its release carried by grandprix247.com, that a technical issue on the MCL40's chassis was found during the mandatory lunch break, delaying the start of its afternoon running until 17:00 local time. Time limitations meant Norris could not complete the race simulation initially planned, though the team reported that 113 laps were completed across Piastri and Norris on the final day and that it was encouraged by the MCL40's reliability over nine days of running. ¹³

Team programmes: mileage, race sims and start practice

Ferrari's release, carried by grandprix247.com, detailed that Leclerc drove the SF-26 for the entire final day, completing 135 laps (731 km), taking the car's three-day total to 336 laps (1818 km) and the cumulative total across both tests to almost 6200 km. His morning focused on set-up checks and longer runs on C3 and C2 compounds in very hot conditions; his afternoon performance runs on C3 and C4 produced the 1m31.992s best. Team principal Fred Vasseur described the test as positive and productive but emphasised the priority had been mileage and building a strong foundation for the season. ³

Racing Bulls reported a strongly positive week through team principal Alan Permane, whose comments were carried by grandprix247.com: both car and power unit ran reliably across the two Bahrain tests, the team completed two race simulations during the week, and rookie Arvid Lindblad described a productive final day featuring qualifying simulations and a full race distance, finishing with his 165-lap tally. Permane also noted the first new parts would arrive in Australia as the car continues to evolve race by race. ³

Red Bull's messaging, again via grandprix247.com's report, focused on the achievement of its first Red Bull Ford Powertrains power unit. CEO and team principal Laurent Mekies said the team should be proud of what it had achieved against the established power unit manufacturers across nine days of shakedowns and testing, while predicting that only after Saturday's qualifying at Albert Park would anyone get a partial idea of the pecking order. Max Verstappen said his runs had essentially completed the full programme but that there was still quite a bit of work to do to be faster. ³

An experimental new start procedure was trialled at the end of each of the three days of the second test, Formula1.com reported, with a practice race start held before the chequered flag on Day 3. The Race's Day 1 analysis, relayed on Formula 1's official Telegram channel, explained the trial's purpose: a five-second hold once the grid lined up, designed to give drivers time to build boost in the turbochargers of the new 2026 engines, which need around 10 seconds of revving in advance. It noted McLaren had conducted full practice start simulations in the pitlane, including a 35-second idle wait to replicate sitting on the grid, showing refinement is still ongoing. ¹²

Looking ahead to Melbourne

With pre-season testing complete, the cars next appear on track at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park on March 6-8, the first round of a 24-round calendar, as Formula1.com noted. Ferrari confirmed the SF-26 would next run in Melbourne on Friday March 6 for first free practice. ¹³

Judging the pecking order remained contentious at the close of running. Grandprix247.com's report framed the situation by noting Ferrari ended the test fastest of all but that questions remained over whether that pace was genuine, with Mercedes most probably sandbagging and McLaren and Red Bull yet to show their hand. Williams' James Vowles, in his team's release carried by the same outlet, was blunter: no one truly knows where all the performance lies, and Williams, he said, had put itself on the back foot with work to do. Sainz said Williams would enter the first half of the year with lower expectations than 2025. ³

Those caveats applied across the pit lane rather than to any single team. McLaren's Andrea Stella said the team had successfully signed off its test items and core functionality and reliability of the MCL40, while Red Bull's Mekies, Mercedes' Shovlin and Williams' Vowles all pointed to substantial remaining work. All confirmed programmes now shift to analysis and development ahead of the Melbourne opener, with no further pre-season running scheduled. ³