In a largely uneventful first preseason testing session of the new 2023 F1 season, it was Max Verstappen and Red Bull who posted the fastest time around the Bahrain International Circuit.
The Dutchman — who has won the World Drivers’ Championship in each of the past two years — continued to cement his position as the driver to beat this season as he posted an unbeaten lap time of 1:32:959, though we’re yet to see all the drivers take to the track with their cars at true full power due to the amount of ongoing aerodynamic testing.
In the opening four-hour session Verstappen was closely followed by Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, who missed out on top spot by less than three tenths of a second, whilst Williams’ Alex Albon finished in P3.
For all the lap times from the first day of preseason testing in Bahrain, The Sporting News has you covered.
Who was fastest on day one of F1 preseason testing?
Session One
| Driver | Team | Time (Gap to lead) |
| Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1:32.959 |
| Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | 1:33.253 (+0.294) |
| Alex Albon | Williams | 1:33.671 (+0.712) |
| Zhou Guanyu | Alfa Romeo | 1:33.723 (+0.764) |
| George Russell | Mercedes | 1:34.174 (+1.215) |
| Nico Hulkenburg | Haas | 1:34.424 (+1.465) |
| Felipe Drugovich | Aston Martin | 1:34.564 (+1.605) |
| Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri | 1:34.671 (+1.712) |
| Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 1:34.822 (+1.863) |
| Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 1:34.888 (+1.929) |
Even though the first preseason testing session of the year proved uneventful, there was an early set back for Aston Martin who are primed to battle for P4 in the Constructors’ Championship in 2023.
With just five minutes on the clock, Felipe Drugovich — who is testing for the British team this week after contracted driver Lance Stroll suffered injuries in a bike accident — pulled his car to the side of the track due to a failure. That brought out the red flag, though the car was cleared away quickly by the marshals and the Brazilian rookie made his way back out onto the track shortly afterwards.
The first session also represented the first time that we’ve seen the new F1 cars on track together, something which highlighted some huge differences in the way the teams have designed their 2023 contenders as seen below with Ferrari and Mercedes.
Mercedes W14 🆚 Ferrari SF-23 👀#F1 #F1Testing pic.twitter.com/7mDDB1zUCs
— Formula 1 (@F1) February 23, 2023
What is the schedule for Formula One preseason testing?
Lasting from Thursday until Saturday, here are all the planned session times for F1 preseason testing in 2023.
Thursday, February 23
| UK | USA | Canada | Australia | |
| Session One | 06:50 – 11:00 GMT | 01:50 – 6:00 ET | 01:50 – 6:00 ET | 19:50 – 00:00 AEDT |
| Session Two | 11:50 – 16:30 GMT | 06:50 – 11:30 ET | 06:50 – 11:30 ET | Friday 00:50 – 05:30 AEDT |
Friday, February 24
| UK | USA | Canada | Australia | |
| Session One | 06:50 – 11:00 GMT | 01:50 – 6:00 ET | 01:50 – 6:00 ET | 19:50 – 00:00 AEDT |
| Session Two | 11:50 – 16:30 GMT | 06:50 – 11:30 ET | 06:50 – 11:30 ET | Saturday 00:50 – 05:30 AEDT |
Saturday, February 25
| UK | USA | Canada | Australia | |
| Session One | 06:50 – 11:00 GMT | 06:50 – 11:30 ET | 06:50 – 11:30 ET | 19:50 – 00:00 AEDT |
| Session Two | 11:50 – 16:30 GMT | 06:50 – 11:30 ET | 06:50 – 11:30 ET | Sunday 00:50 – 05:30 AEDT |
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