F1 2025 Testing: Bahrain Day 1 Wraps with Norris on Top
Day 1 of Formula 1's 2025 pre-season testing at the Bahrain International Circuit is in the books, and it proved to be a dramatic opener. From a rookie's morning blitz to a power blackout throwing the afternoon into chaos, the teams battled through to an 8:00 PM finish. Three days—ending February 28—are all they've got before Melbourne, and Bahrain dished out a gritty start.
The morning's 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM slot saw Mercedes' Andrea Kimi Antonelli light up the timesheets with a 1:31.428 over 64 laps, topping the pack. Red Bull's Liam Lawson pushed close (1:31.560, +0.132, 61 laps) despite a spin at Turn 3, while Williams' Alex Albon nabbed third (1:31.573, +0.145, 52 laps). Max Verstappen took fourth (1:31.610, +0.182, 55 laps) in the RB21, and Lewis Hamilton's Ferrari debut landed fifth (1:31.834, +0.406, 48 laps) in the SF-25. Alpine's Jack Doohan (P6, 1:31.841, +0.413, 50 laps) and Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso (P7, 1:31.874, +0.446, 40 laps) hung tough, but McLaren's Oscar Piastri (P8, 1:32.084, +0.656, 42 laps), Sauber's Nico Hulkenberg (P9, 1:32.084, +0.656, 45 laps), and Haas' Ollie Bearman (P10, 1:35.477, +4.049, 56 laps) trailed. No breakdowns marred the run—teams logged laps under windy conditions and mid-20s heat, with the abrasive track chewing through tires early.
BIC Chief Executive Shaikh Salman bin Isa Al Khalifa, speaking exclusively to TDT yesterday, framed the stakes: 'I think with pre-season testing and because they only have these three days to test their cars, they have a program of trying to identify everything that they had during the wind tunnel testing and correlate that and make sure that it is the same when they drive on track.' That focus shone through—morning laps were all about data, not drama.
Afternoon Session: Norris Strikes Late
The afternoon, starting at 3:00 PM, hit a snag when a circuit-wide power outage at 4:30 PM killed the lights and stopped the clocks for over an hour. Esteban Ocon's Haas VF-25 sat stranded, headlights cutting the dusk, until power limped back by 6:50 PM. The FIA pushed the finish to 8:00 PM, and teams scrambled to reclaim lost ground as raindrops teased the cameras.
Lando Norris seized the day, posting a 1:30.027 on C5 tires—softest of the lot—edging Ferrari's Charles Leclerc (1:30.558, +0.531, 84 laps) by half a second. Mercedes' George Russell took third (1:31.082, +1.055, 68 laps), Verstappen fourth (1:31.395, +1.368, 61 laps), and Ocon fifth (1:31.840, +1.813, 54 laps). Williams' Carlos Sainz (P6, 1:32.890, +2.460, 60 laps), Alpine's Pierre Gasly (P7, 1:33.385, +2.955, 48 laps), Racing Bulls' Isack Hadjar (P8, 1:33.688, +3.258, 50 laps), Sauber's Gabriel Bortoleto (P9, 1:34.891, +4.461, 48 laps), and Aston Martin's Lance Stroll (P10, 1:35.915, +5.485, 44 laps) closed it out.
Shaikh Salman predicted the late twist to TDT: 'By the second, third day, I expect some teams trying to push the timings and create a little drama to see if they are really quick or are they high on fuel, light on fuel.' Norris' flyer on softs—fuel load unclear—proved him right, stirring the pot early.
Final Tally: Lap Counts and Leaders
Norris' late charge sealed Day 1's bragging rights, but lap counts tell the deeper tale. Ferrari led with 132 (Hamilton 48, Leclerc 84), Mercedes matched at 132 (Antonelli 64, Russell 68), and McLaren hit 119 (Piastri 42, Norris 77). Red Bull's 122 (Verstappen 61, Lawson 61) was rock-solid, Williams notched 112 (Albon 52, Sainz 60), and Alpine's 98 (Doohan 50, Gasly 48) held firm. Haas (110, Bearman 56, Ocon 54) and Racing Bulls (106, Tsunoda 56, Hadjar 50) stayed busy, while Sauber (93, Hulkenberg 45, Bortoleto 48) and Aston Martin (84, Alonso 40, Stroll 44) trailed. No major breakdowns—just the blackout—kept the focus on mileage.
Piastri, who ran morning, told reporters pre-session: 'You're 99% looking at yourself and looking at how the car's behaving, if it's behaving as you expect, and then trying things with the setup.' His P8 faded, but Norris' haul—77 laps, P1—showed McLaren's grit.
Sharpest on Track
Norris' 1:30.027 and 77 laps scream McLaren's ready to defend their crown, shrugging off Bahrain's rough edges. Antonelli's morning pace—64 laps, P1 then—marks him as a rookie to watch, giving Mercedes early swagger. Ferrari's Hamilton-Leclerc duo piled on 132 laps, Red Bull's Verstappen-Lawson pairing hit 122—both unflappable. Williams' Albon and Sainz quietly racked up 112, while Haas' Bearman and Sauber's Bortoleto lagged—gaps of +4.049 and +4.461 hint at growing pains.
Chaos and Clues
The power outage was Day 1's villain—over an hour lost, teams fuming, Ocon's Haas a ghost in the dark. Wind and dust messed with aero reads, and late raindrops kept everyone guessing. Shaikh Salman predicted: 'With tyre deg, especially with the wind tomorrow and the next couple of days, it will be interesting to see how much data they pick up and how much different it will be when the race comes in April.' Yesterday's 100-plus lap hauls proved teams adapted—tires got hammered, data got banked.
Tech peeked through: Ferrari's pull-rod suspension, Red Bull's ERS tweak, and McLaren's late surge held up. Shaikh Salman's vision for the bigger picture landed too: 'We want a safe race, one, and two, an exciting race where people come, see the excitement, the sparks. His parting words also rang true: 'The desert never sleeps and it's going to come alive with the race and we look forward to seeing you all there.'
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