Pre-season testing begins on Thursday at Bahrain International Circuit and there are 19 different drivers taking the wheel for 10 teams – including reigning Formula 2 champion Felipe Drugovich and reigning F1 champion Max Verstappen.
Lance Stroll is absent as he recovers from a training accident, so Drugovich takes the wheel of the Aston Martin AMR23 on Thursday morning before handing over to Fernando Alonso.
ESSENTIAL GUIDE: How to read Bahrain pre-season testing – with F1 strategy expert Bernie Collins
Verstappen is the only driver who will remain in the car for both Thursday sessions, while at Ferrari it's Carlos Sainz who begins the day before handing over to Charles Leclerc. At Mercedes, George Russell starts the day in the W14 and Lewis Hamilton drives in the afternoon.
Testing starts at 1000 and ends at 1930 with an hour's break at 1415.
Who's driving on Day 1 of the 2023 pre-season test
| TEAM | DRIVER (SESSION) |
|---|---|
| Red Bull | Max Verstappen |
| Ferrari | Carlos Sainz (AM) Charles Leclerc (PM) |
| Mercedes | George Russell (AM) Lewis Hamilton (PM) |
| Alpine | Pierre Gasly (AM) Esteban Ocon (PM) |
| McLaren | Oscar Piastri (AM) Lando Norris (PM) |
| Alfa Romeo | Zhou Guanyu (AM) Valtteri Bottas (PM) |
| Aston Martin | Felipe Drugovich (AM) Fernando Alonso (PM) |
| Haas | Nico Hulkenberg (AM) Kevin Magnussen (PM) |
| AlphaTauri | Yuki Tsunoda (AM) Nyck de Vries (PM) |
| Williams | Alex Albon (AM) Logan Sargeant (PM) |
Next Up
Related Articles
Leclerc calls Ferrari’s focus shift to 2026 a ‘no-brainer’
F1 CEO Domenicali reflects on 'phenomenal' 2025
Tremayne'Why I’ll always have a soft spot for Sauber'
Watch as the F1 grid does Secret Santa for 2025
11 times F1 drivers took another driver’s car number.webp)
Winners & Losers5 Winners and 5 Losers from the 2025 season