Bahrain F1 Testing Day: Sainz fastest with most mileage

Although most drivers split sessions with their teammates, Sainz was on testing duty on Thursday, with teammate Alex Albon having Thursday in Bahrain to himself. The Spaniard will next drive when the season kicks off with FP1 for the Australian Grand Prix on Friday 14 March.

Reigning F1 World Champion Max Verstappen also sat out the day, as Red Bull newcomer got to grips with the RB21. He too will only drive the car again in Melbourne.

At the sharp end, Sainz clcked the fastest lap of the day with a 1:29.348s. The Williams driver also logged the most mileage, completing 127 laps across both sessions.

After Lewis Hamilton set the pace for Ferrari in the morning, most teams switched drivers for the afternoon. However, Red Bull and Williams kept Liam Lawson and Sainz in the cockpit for the entire day before their respective teammates take over on Friday.

Sainz wasted no time getting on track when the afternoon session began at 1500 local time, while Lando Norris—Wednesday’s fastest driver—emerged later in the McLaren. Despite suffering a spin early in the session, Sainz maintained his pace and edged ahead of Hamilton’s morning benchmark by 0.031s. Notably, Sainz also topped the timesheets on the second day of last year’s pre-season testing, then driving for Ferrari.

In the other Red car, Charles Leclerc slotted into P3, following a "positive" first day of running for Ferrari. George Russell placed fourth, with fellow Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli rounding out the top five.

Lance Stroll was P6 for Aston Martin, ahead of Lawson in P7. The Red Bull reserve lost some track time in the morning due to a water systems issue on the RB21 but recovered in the afternoon. Alpine’s Jack Doohan finished eighth, ahead of teammate Pierre Gasly in ninth.

Rookie Isack Hadjar completed the top ten, recording 94 laps in the afternoon session. Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso ended the day in 11th, followed by Racing Bulls teammate Yuki Tsunoda in P12. McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Norris occupied P13 and P14, respectively, while Kick Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto and Nico Hulkenberg took P15 and P16.

The Haas duo of Esteban Ocon and Ollie Bearman finished P17 and P18 as the team continued to focus on its own testing programme rather than outright pace.

The day concluded with procedural checks from the FIA, including a simulation formation lap and practice start. The third and final day of pre-season testing will commence on Friday at 10:00 local time.