George Russell, Mercedes, Bahrain International Circuit, 2026 pre-season test

George Russell put Mercedes back on top as the first day of the final pre-season test came to a close in Bahrain, setting the fastest time seen so far this year at the track.

However there was almost nothing to choose between him and Oscar Piastri, who was second fastest for McLaren. The pair were separated by just a hundredth of a second at the top of the times.

The day’s running concluded with a test of the FIA’s new procedure for race starts. Due to concerns over some cars potentially making very slow getaways, race control opted to trial a new sequence including a five-second pre-start warning. All 11 cars lined up on the grid and pulled away without drama.

After diagnosing a problem with their Honda power unit, Aston Martin made a delayed start to the second part of the day’s test. After Lance Stroll joined the track he experienced an apparent problem with his car as he braked into turn 11. He spun and came to a halt in a gravel trap, triggering red flags.

Isack Hadjar had a more productive second half of the test after completing just 13 laps earlier on. He was the only driver to spend the entire day in his car, as all the other teams swapped during the lunch break.

Piastri took the top time off Charles Leclerc just before the two-hour mark in the second part of the test. Russell edged him out of the top spot with less than half an hour remaining, setting a 1’33.459, 3.6 seconds off last year’s pole position time.

2026 pre-season test three, day one results

Pos.Car numberDriverTeamModelBest timeGapLaps
163George RussellMercedesW171’33.45976
281Oscar PiastriMcLarenMCL401’33.4690.01070
316Charles LeclercFerrariSF-261’33.7390.28070
41Lando NorrisMcLarenMCL401’34.0520.59354
512Andrea Kimi AntonelliMercedesW171’34.1580.69969
66Isack HadjarRed BullRB221’34.2600.80166
744Lewis HamiltonFerrariSF-261’34.2990.84044
855Carlos Sainz JnrWilliamsFW481’35.1131.65455
943Franco ColapintoAlpineA5261’35.2541.79560
105Gabriel BortoletoAudiR261’35.2631.80471
1123Alexander AlbonWilliamsFW481’35.6902.23155
1230Liam LawsonRacing Bulls031’35.7532.29461
1387Oliver BearmanHaasVF-261’35.7782.31942
1410Pierre GaslyAlpineA5261’35.8982.43961
1518Lance StrollAston MartinAMR261’35.9742.51526
1631Esteban OconHaasVF-261’36.4182.95965
1714Fernando AlonsoAston MartinAMR261’36.5363.07728
1827Nico HulkenbergAudiR261’36.7413.28249
1941Arvid LindbladRacing Bulls031’36.7693.31075
2077Valtteri BottasCadillac1’36.7983.33935
2111Sergio PerezCadillac1’38.1914.73224

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