Sky Sports F1

Sky Sports confirm F1 pundit’s absence at Bahrain testing

Kerry Violet Friday 20 February 2026 10:55

Ted Kravitz stands in the pitlane at the Las Vegas GP

Sky Sports have confirmed they will be without one of their key reporters in the F1 paddock this week for the final stint of pre-season testing in Bahrain.

With a major overhaul of the chassis and power unit regulations coming into play this season, all 11 F1 teams were given a maximum of nine days testing ahead of the first race of 2026.

After January's Barcelona shakedown, the stars of the grid headed to Bahrain to carry out official pre-season testing in Sakhir, but despite the event usually being broadcast in full to fans at home, only the second week of testing has been available to watch live on Sky Sports F1.

Following the controversial decision to make the Barcelona shakedown a private event, fans are now getting their first taste of full F1 coverage with F1TV and Sky Sports F1 presenters sharing presenting and commentary duties for the final days of testing in Bahrain this week.

But after a notable absence from fan favourite Ted Kravitz on Wednesday and Thursday, Sky confirmed that their pit-lane reporter would not be making an appearance at all in Bahrain this week.

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No Ted's Notebook for Bahrain week two testing

After Kravitz returned with his at times unhinged 'Ted's Notebook' segment in Bahrain last week, fans will now have to go without the presenter's humorous paddock roundups in the second and final week of testing.

On the first day of the second week of running in Bahrain, the official Sky Sports F1 testing live blog responded to a post on Ferrari's social media channels that saw Charles Leclerc carrying a notebook of his own around the Bahrain paddock.

In response, Sky confirmed Kravitz's absence, writing: "With Sky Sports F1's Ted Kravitz not in Bahrain for this week's test, it appears Charles Leclerc is attempting to fill the void by carrying around his own notebook.

"It remains to be seen whether he's going to use it to give us a half-hour round up of the day's action this evening."

The Sky Sports F1 TV channel and their YouTube channel will continue to upload their daily Bahrain testing roundups, which are hosted by Craig Slater.

Full coverage will resume on Sky F1 for the final day of testing on Friday, February 20, between 7am and 4pm GMT.