F1 Testing 2026 Results: Barcelona shakedown times as Lewis Hamilton roars back to P1

lewis hamilton, lando norris, ferrari, mclaren, canva — Photo: © IMAGO

Pre-Season Testing 2026

F1 Testing 2026 Results: Barcelona shakedown times as Lewis Hamilton roars back to P1

The private shakedown in Barcelona has now come to an end

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Friday 30 January 2026 18:19 Updated: 12:28

Lando Norris put in McLaren's strongest performance of pre-season testing so far on the final day in Barcelona, but the champion was beaten to the top of the timesheets by Lewis Hamilton during the final moments of the shakedown.

Having decided not to run in either of the first two days, Norris and team-mate Oscar Piastri have been swapping in and out of the car over the last three days, with Piastri struggling with reliability issues on Thursday which cut McLaren's testing day short.

On Friday, Norris stepped into the car for the afternoon session, and had been reported as the fastest driver of the day, before Hamilton stole the limelight, reportedly posting the fastest time of 1:16.348 in the final 15 minutes.

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Hamilton finished the day and the week with the fastest time having gone one tenth quicker than George Russells previous best from Thursday.

Off the track, Norris could not contain his excitement at his return to F1 this week as a world champion, with the Brit speaking about having the number one on his car for the first time.

Overall, Mercedes reportedly completed 500 laps exactly throughout the week, with Ferrari over the 400 mark. Haas were another surprise package in that regard, showcasing remarkable reliability.

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What happened in pre-season testing today?

The morning session on Friday was very busy, with eight F1 teams all heading out for their final allowed day of testing during this Barcelona private shakedown.

Mercedes and Racing Bulls had already completed all three of their allocated days, while Williams have not been present at the circuit all week, with their 2026 car not yet ready to take to the track.

After only completing five laps all week so far thanks to Lance Stroll yesterday evening getting in the first few laps in the new Adrian Newey-designed car, Aston Martin decided to try and get as much running in as possible today.

Fernando Alonso took over from Stroll, meaning the Spaniard drove a Newey-designed car for the first time in his career, with the pair having missed each other over the last 25 years.

Alonso had completed 50 laps by the lunchbreak, as had Red Bull star Max Verstappen in his RB22.

It was Charles Leclerc who set the fastest time in the morning, however, posting a 1:16.6, two tenths slower than the fastest time of the whole week.

In the afternoon, Leclerc swapped out and seven-time champion Hamilton took over in the SF-26 instead, also getting in plenty of laps as Ferrari surpassed the 400 mark for the week and topped the timesheets.

For McLaren, Oscar Piastri took to the track during the morning session, before world champion Norris took over in the afternoon, beaten by Hamilton in the final moments of the Barcelona shakedown.

Haas - who have become known for their mammoth stints this week - saw Ollie Bearman complete 102 laps in the morning before Esteban Ocon, who completed 154 laps on Monday, took over in the afternoon.

Who was fastest in 2026 pre-season testing?

Here are the fastest lap times from each day at the Barcelona shakedown. Please note that all of the times are reported, and not official due to the private nature of this week's shakedown.

Who topped each day of testing?
Day	Driver	Team	Lap time
Monday, January 26	Isack Hadjar	Red Bull	1:18.159
Tuesday, January 27	Max Verstappen	Red Bull	1:19.578
Wednesday, January 28	Kimi Antonelli	Mercedes	1:17.362
Thursday, January 29	George Russell	Mercedes	1:16.445
Friday, January 30	Lewis Hamilton	Ferrari	1:16.348

Written by

Sam Cook - Digital Journalist

Sam Cook is a talented young sports journalist and social media professional who now specialises in Formula 1, having previously worked as a football journalist and a local news reporter for a variety of different brands.

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F1 McLaren Lando Norris pre-season testing