🏁 Bahrain Testing 2026- EL BOX DE FRANCO

Two test blocks, six key days, and the point where theory meets reality

Published

18 Feb 2026

Est. reading time

4 min

The 2026 era starts here

👋 Hi FranClub, Franco here bringing you the latest F1 updates, starting with testing in Bahrain. These two weeks don’t define results, but they do shape everything that follows. Australia will be my first real exam, and what we build now will set the tone for the season ahead.

👉 Alpine and the value of our first kilometres

We’ve already published the full report on what we achieved as a team in the first block. You can read it here. For us at Alpine F1 Team this pre-season carries special weight. Not only because of the regulation change, but because so much is new: technical structure, car concepts and the Mercedes power unit, which is also a new chapter for us. Every test day counts.

With Pierre, we have three very clear focuses:

- Quickly understanding the car’s behaviour. - Building confidence from the start. - Arriving in Australia with a reliable strategy.

Bahrain has been very different from the Barcelona shakedown: this is where things start to be confirmed.

Second week of test in Bahrain: now the real picture begins to emerge

We’re back at the Bahrain International Circuit for the second pre-season block, and this is where it gets more interesting. Last week was about understanding the car. This week is about starting to measure ourselves. In the first test we completed 318 laps as a team. It wasn’t perfect, but it was productive. I finished Friday with 144 laps and good sensations. The car is clearly a step forward compared to last year. Now the objective changes.

In this second block you usually start to see:

- More realistic race simulations. - Comparable long runs. - Some lower-fuel attempts. - Finer performance work. Not everyone shows everything, but the overall picture begins to take shape.

How we’ll split the time on track

This week’s plan is as follows:

Programmes can always be adjusted depending on how the work evolves, but that’s the base plan.

Completely new cars

We haven’t carried over a single part from last year. Everything we saw in the simulator and wind tunnel now has to work on track.

Bahrain allows us to focus on some key areas:

- Real internal comparisons. - Stress-testing energy management. - Proper reliability and stability checks. - Measuring consistency. - Understanding how the car reacts to set-up changes.

The track, the climate and the format make the information far more representative than in Barcelona. Even so, looking only at lap times remains a mistake. Only once this week is finished and we process all the data will a clearer picture begin to emerge of where we stand. Not a definitive ranking. But real signals.

REMINDER: Full live coverage this time

Unlike the first block, all eight hours of on-track action each day will be broadcast live on F1 TV. Sessions will run: - 10:00–14:00 local time. - One-hour mandatory lunch break. - 15:00–19:00 local time. On my app we’ll share the key wrap-up at the end of each day.

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⏱️ This week’s track schedule:

Wednesday 18 February Day 1: 10:00 🇧🇭 / 07:00 🇬🇧 / 04:00 🇦🇷

Thursday 19 February Day 2: 10:00 🇧🇭 / 07:00 🇬🇧 / 04:00 🇦🇷

Friday 20 February Day 3: 10:00 🇧🇭 / 07:00 🇬🇧 / 04:00 🇦🇷

Each day finishes at 19:00 local time (13:00 🇦🇷).

After this test, only two weeks remain until the season opener in Australia, held at Albert Park Circuit. When this week ends, we’ll have a much clearer picture. Not definitive. But much more real.

The circuit: Sakhir 🇧🇭

It’s a demanding layout: heavy braking zones, changing winds and big temperature swings between morning and evening. If a car works well here, it usually works well in many other places. Last week was my first proper experience driving in Bahrain, so I’m also building personal learning around this track. You can also check out what we published last year here.

What we’ll understand after Bahrain

We’ll start to see some key things, even if not everything is fully defined yet: which concepts work, who arrives better prepared, and how solid each technical base really is. After that, we head to the other side of the world, and the focus shifts fully to racing in Australia.

See you on track! Thank you for your support, always.

- Franco 🩵

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