Formula 1 Testing – Looking Back at Pre-Season Testing 2024

The 2024 FIA Method 1 World Championship season is simply across the nook, with the opening race of the yr to happen subsequent Saturday on the Bahrain Worldwide Circuit, and all twenty drivers had been in a position to take to the identical monitor final week for 3 days of testing.

The Checkered Flag seems to be over the three days in Bahrain to see who’s sizzling and who’s not going into the brand new season, and whether or not anybody has it in them to problem Oracle Pink Bull Racing and Max Verstappen for the titles.

Day 1 – Verstappen Leads the Approach for Pink Bull

Reigning World Drivers’ Champion set an ominous assertion on the opening day of testing in Bahrain, with the Oracle Pink Bull Racing driver ending the day greater than a second away from the sector as everybody had their first operating with their 2024 equipment.

Verstappen, the winner of 19 of the twenty-two races in 2023, set a greatest time of 1:31.344 to tempo the sector, which noticed eighteen of the twenty drivers have their first runs of their new vehicles.  Solely Sergio Perez and Lewis Hamilton didn’t participate throughout the 2 classes.

Lando Norris ended the day an encouraging second quickest for the McLaren F1 Workforce, with the Woking-based outfit aiming to begin the 2024 season the way in which they ended 2023.  Norris’ 1:32.484 was a tenth forward of Scuderia Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz Jr., whereas Daniel Ricciardo put his Visa CashApp RB into fourth.

Pierre Gasly was the one different driver to get into the 1:32’s for the BWT Alpine F1 Workforce, with the Frenchman ending fifth forward of Aston Martin Aramco Method 1 Workforce’s Lance Stroll.  Stroll might be comfortable to get some pre-season operating in after lacking testing altogether in 2023 after breaking bones in a biking accident.

Charles Leclerc put the second Ferrari into seventh forward of the second Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso, whereas the highest ten was rounded out by McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and the Stake F1 Workforce Kick Sauber of Zhou Guanyu.

The one concern throughout the day was Alexander Albon stopping on monitor in the direction of the top of the session, together with his Williams Racing automobile stopping simply after flip three after showing to fail on the primary straight.  Fortunately the automobile was in a position to be recovered underneath native yellow flags somewhat than a purple flag.

Day 2 – Sainz Heads the Subject for Ferrari

Ferrari ended day two of the check with the quickest time, though setting the time on the C4 Pirelli tyre, one that won’t be used through the Grand Prix weekend, might be flattering to the Maranello-based workforce.

Sainz paced the sector on Thursday, with the Spaniard setting a greatest time of 1:29.921, virtually seven-tenths of a second forward of Perez, the Mexican having his first style of the Pink Bull RB20 after seeing Verstappen take the reigns for the entire of day one.

The morning session was shortened after a drain cowl was dislodged at flip eleven, with the particles from it run over by Sainz and by Hamilton, who was having his first style of the brand new Mercedes-AMG Petronas Method One Workforce’s W15.  Sainz’s ground was broken and wanted changing earlier than Leclerc took over the operating for the afternoon session.

Hamilton was in a position to end third total on the day forward of countryman Norris, whereas Ricciardo continued Visa CashApp RB’s good kind with fifth.  Leclerc ended sixth forward of Stroll and Alpine’s Esteban Ocon, with the highest ten rounded out by Stake F1 Workforce Kick Sauber’s Valtteri Bottas in ninth and Piastri in tenth.

Day 3 – Leclerc Concludes Take a look at as Ferrari Leads Mercedes

Leclerc ensured Ferrari maintained their place on the prime of the time sheets on the third and remaining day of the check, though his C4 tyre run was not as fast as his team-mate had been on day two.

The Monegasque racer’s greatest time of 1:30.322 was simply 0.046 seconds away from Mercedes’ George Russell, whereas simply three-tenths of a second again was the Stake of Zhou, the Chinese language driver exhibiting there may be some tempo within the C44 heading into the brand new season.

Verstappen, who sat out day two after pacing day one, ended fourth quickest for Pink Bull however was extra targeted on longer runs somewhat than outright efficiency, whereas Yuki Tsunoda within the sister Visa CashApp RB workforce ended fifth.

Albon concluded the day with the sixth quickest time for Williams forward of McLaren’s Piastri, whereas Alonso, Sainz and Perez rounded out the highest ten.

For the primary time throughout the three days, the MoneyGram Haas F1 Workforce appeared to do some efficiency runs, with Nico Hülkenberg ending simply outdoors the highest ten, simply forward of Hamilton, Stroll and Norris.

There was one other stoppage for drain repairs through the morning session, with plans now being labored on forward of the Grand Prix to forestall a repeat.