NEW F1 testing dates revealed after incident-filled Bahrain

A Red Bull front wing covered in flow-vis paint during F1 testing — Photo: © IMAGO

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NEW F1 testing dates revealed after incident-filled Bahrain

Bahrain has played host to pre-season testing this week

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Saturday 1 March 2025 08:55

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Formula 1 testing is set to be extended in 2026, following an incident-filled 2025 testing week.

F1 has been at the Bahrain International Circuit this week, as preparations ramp up for the 2025 season, with teams looking to get in as many laps as possible in their new 2025 machinery.

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However, all three days were disrupted at various points due to bizarre incidents, eating into drivers' and teams' preparation time.

Day one saw a circuit-wide power cut which reduced running by an hour, although the FIA did then extend the session, while day two saw rain disrupt running at various points, with eight of the 10 teams deciding not to bring any kind of wet tyre to the circuit.

On day three, a pane of glass fell from the pitlane gantry onto the circuit, producing a red flag in the morning session, while a slow-moving bus wandered onto the track in the afternoon session producing yet another red flag.

F1 has been in Bahrain this week for pre-season testing

New regulations are sweeping into F1 in 2026

New testing dates revealed

All of these bizarre incidents reduced the time on track for drivers and teams, although the impressive reliability of the cars in the fourth year of the current regulations meant that there weren't too many creases for teams to iron out.

However, 2026 is set to see a whole host of new regulations sweeping into the sport, both within the power units of cars, and the chassis itself, the biggest regulation change since 2014.

Because of this, F1 is set to triple the amount of testing for teams ahead of the 2026 season, according to a report from Autosport.

A behind-closed-doors shakedown session is being pencilled in for January 2026 around the Barcelona track, before two three-day official testing slots at the Bahrain International Circuit.

Those two official testing weeks are set to be on February 12-14 and February 18-20, before the new era of F1 gets underway.