2026 Formula 1 Bahrain preseason Test 2: Norris tops Day 2 morning session as Verstappen joins the action
F1 NewsThursday, 19 February 2026 at 12:10
Lando Norris topped the morning session of the second day of running of the final 2026 Formula 1 preseason test held at Bahrain International Circuit while Max Verstappen made his on-track debut.
Norris drove 72 laps for McLaren in the morning before he hands the MCL40 over to his teammate Oscar Piastri in the afternoon.
The Briton managed the best lap time of 1:33.453 which was 0.131s faster than Verstappen who was second fastest for Red Bull Racing.
Verstappen sat out the first day of testing and will remain in the cockpit of the RB22 for the rest of the day which he started with 56 laps of running.
After topping the first day in Bahrain, George Russell ended the morning session of Day 2 third fastest in the Mercedes W17 with 77 laps, the most any team could manage.
Kimi Antonelli will take over the W17 after the lunch break.
Williams continued a solid run with 71 laps delivered by Alex Albon who also managed the fourth fastest time and will remain in the FW48 for the remainder of the day.
Gabriel Bortoleto was fifth fastest for Audi albeit with only 29 laps on the board and will make way for Nico Hulkenberg in the afternoon.
Oliver Bearman was sixth fastest for Haas after racking up only 69 laps and will vacate the cockpit of the VF26 for Esteban Ocon who will be handle the PM session for the American squad.
Franco Colapinto put in 54 laps for Alpine on his way to seventh fastest and will remain in the A526 for the rest of the Day.
Liam Lawson spent more time in the pits than driving and was seen napping in the VCARB03 at one point. He ended the session eighth fastest with only 27 laps. Hopefully the Kiwi can add more laps to his tally when he gets back on track after the break.
While Aston Martin were a bit better than Racing Bulls, they only managed 40 laps with Fernando Alonso at the wheel and posting the the ninth fastest time.
The Spaniard will remain on duty and hope for more mileage in the AMR26 in the afternoon.
Cadillac, for a change, hand a better session with Valtteri Bottas managing 58 laps and ending the session 11th fastest.
Ferrari and their trick rear wing
Ferrari had everyone talking when their SF-26 hit the track with Lewis Hamilton at the wheel and showed off a trick rear wing active aero mechanism were the moving element would rotates when activated.
However, the seven-time F1 Champion managed only five laps before having to return to the pits with an unspecified chassis issue that kept him there all session long.
Hamilton set the tenth fastest time in the very brief running time he had on track.
You spin me right round! 😵💫
— Formula 1 (@F1) February 19, 2026
Here's Ferrari's innovative solution to moving the upper flap of the rear wing as part of this season's active aero introduction 👀 #F1 #F1Testing pic.twitter.com/yY0ZcI1Kph
However, the Briton managed to get out on track in the dying moments of the morning session when another revised race start procedure was practiced.
The only positive for him and Ferrari was that he managed a lightning start compared to his rivals.
Hopefully Hamilton can manage some more running as he will remain at the wheel of the SF-26 for the rest of the day.
Bahrain Preseason Test 2, Day 1, AM
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