Charles Leclerc finishes on top as lengthy Bahrain test concludes

The absolute fastest time of the six-day pre-season test in Bahrain was set during the final hour at the Sakhir circuit using the new Pirelli tyres. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) improved yesterday’s benchmark set by Kimi Antonelli by eight-tenths of a second, closing two weeks of sessions with a 1:31.992s on the C4 compound.

The Monegasque thus finished ahead of Lando Norris (McLaren), who clocked a 1:32.871s, Max Verstappen (Red Bull) with a 1:33.109s, and George Russell (Mercedes), who posted a 1:33.197s. All three ran on the C3 compound but failed to beat the fastest time on this tyre, which was held by Leclerc with a 1:32.655s. Behind them, Pierre Gasly recorded his best time of the day on the C5s, stopping the clock at 1:33.421s.

The softest compound was also used today for short runs by Alpine and Williams (Cadillac, however, did not repeat yesterday’s experiment). Of the four teams with the C5 at their disposal, Aston Martin was the only one not to use it. Adrian Newey’s team completed just six laps on C3s this morning before halting all track activity.

The leaders on the harder compounds were Gabriel Bortoleto on the C1 (1:37.294s) and Arvin Lindblad (Racing Bulls) on the C2 (1:35.238s). Meanwhile, Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin), Alex Albon (Williams), Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls), Franco Colapinto (Williams), and Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) did not go out on the track today.

As seen yesterday, teams utilised the compounds for both performance runs and long-distance evaluations. Notable stints included 25 laps by Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) on C2s and 24 laps by Esteban Ocon (Haas) on C1s. The Frenchman was also the only driver to fit a set of Intermediates, running them for four laps to test front wing behaviour.

Mario Isola, Pirelli’s Motorsport Director, commented:“The radical changes introduced to the cars have inevitably shifted the teams’ focus towards power units and aerodynamics rather than tyres over the last few days. The final stages of testing are usually dedicated to optimising the car-tyre package, but it is clear some teams haven’t reached that point yet.

“Generally speaking, track feedback has been consistent with our simulation expectations. Drivers were able to gain confidence with the entire Pirelli range through both performance trials and long runs, even using the C4 and C5 compounds which aren’t particularly suited to a circuit like Sakhir.

“Mechanical resistance appeared strong across all options, with no signs of graining or blistering. Degradation levels are almost certainly higher now than what we expect for the Bahrain race, when temperatures will be lower and cars more developed.

“A central theme this season will certainly be balancing temperatures between the axles, especially ahead of the first race in Melbourne. The lower loads of a street circuit might require more intensive tyre preparation or differentiated tyre blanket temperatures, particularly in qualifying.

“In any case, it will be interesting to discover in Australia how much teams have been ‘sandbagging’ their engine power to avoid showing their hand. We only have to wait a couple of weeks to see the true pecking order.”

This week, 20,693 kilometres were covered, predominantly on the C3 (61%), which remained the most popular compound across both blocks of testing. In total, the eleven teams covered 41,366 kilometres over the six days, more than the Earth’s circumference. Since Wednesday, 326 sets of slick tyres were used, bringing the total for the entire pre-season to 591 sets.