Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen jet takes off BEFORE F1 testing ends after star slams 2026 cars

Max Verstappen is out of Bahrain already

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Friday 13 February 2026 15:59 Updated: 16:10

Red Bull F1 star Max Verstappen left Bahrain pre-season testing before the end of the first official test of 2026.

F1 has been in Bahrain for a three-day test at the Sakhir International Circuit, and Verstappen has been racing around in his new RB22, getting to grips with the wholesale regulation changes that have hit the sport this year.

Verstappen completed a whopping 136 laps on the first day of testing, before then completing 61 laps on day three, ending the morning session third in the timesheets.

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However, Verstappen has voiced his discontent at the new regulations, claiming that the cars are 'not fun' to drive, and that they are like 'Formula E on steroids' due to their added reliance on electrical energy.

While some drivers have also been rather negative about the new rules, Verstappen's 2025 title rival Lando Norris said that Verstappen could opt to 'retire' if he wanted to and not race in F1, claiming that he had found his new McLaren 'fun' to drive.

Now, following a week in which Verstappen has issued some brutally honest statements, he has left the circuit early, with FlightAware.com showing that his private jet took off at 3:29pm local time in Bahrain (AST), 90 minutes after the end of the morning session in which he was a part of.

Verstappen's team-mate Isack Hadjar took over in the RB22 for the afternoon, as was scheduled, but Verstappen did not waste any time in getting out of the country, and would not have had too much time to feed back to his team on his 61 laps of testing on Friday morning.

F1 HEADLINES: Verstappen destroys new regulations as Project Newey hits trouble

F1's gruelling testing schedule

Verstappen's desire to get home could well be linked to the fact that the drivers have to be back at the Sakhir International Circuit in less than a week, for a second three-day testing event between February 18-20.

On top of these two Bahrain events, there was also a private shakedown in Barcelona last month, which saw teams have three allocated days of testing once more.

The reason for this extensive testing programme is because of the new regulation changes, with F1 giving teams nine days to iron out any issues that they might have with their power unit or new aerodynamic car design.

However, the reliability of all 11 teams has been pretty good considering how early we are into the new rules, and most teams have switched their focus to race and qualifying simulators already.

Following Bahrain's second testing event, there is a gruelling 24-race calendar coming up in 2026, featuring six sprint events too. No wonder Verstappen is eager to get home while he can!

When does the 2026 F1 season start?

The 2026 F1 season gets underway on Friday, March 6, at the Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne for the Australian Grand Prix.

FP1 will mark the first session of the season at 12:30pm local time (1:30am GMT), while qualifying will get underway on Saturday, March 7 at 4pm local time (5am GMT). Lights out for the first grand prix of the year is at 3pm local time (4am GMT).

Red Bull Max Verstappen 2026 regulations pre-season testing