This Thursday, February 12, the second day of preseason testing took place, in which only 16 of the 22 drivers were able to get on track to test their cars. It was a day marked by Turn 10 at the Sakhir circuit, red flags, and strong statements from Max Verstappen and Lando Norris.
Preseason testing in Bahrain continues and teams are taking advantage of every run on track to fine-tune details before the start of the championship, scheduled for March 8 in Australia. On the second day of activity, the standout driver was Charles Leclerc, who set the fastest time of the day with a 1:34.273 at the wheel of the Ferrari SF-26 and also completed 139 laps, making him one of the busiest drivers. Beyond the lap time, at this stage the main objective is not to chase the fastest lap, but to gather data, evaluate reliability, and understand the behavior of the new systems on the 2026 cars.
The action was once again split into morning and afternoon sessions, and it was marked by several interruptions with red flags. During the morning, Sergio “Checo” Pérez suffered a mechanical failure in Turn 10 that forced him to stop his Cadillac on track. The stoppage caused a pause of approximately 40 minutes while the team worked to fix the issue. Ultimately, the Mexican was able to return to the track and continue with his testing program.
In the afternoon, the other Cadillac driver, Valtteri Bottas, also caused an interruption when on his 18th lap the mirror came off his car. The stewards decided to briefly neutralize the session to remove the part and ensure safety. Later on, the third red flag of the day was the result of a mechanical problem on Pierre Gasly’s Alpine A526, as he stopped after completing 97 laps. The failure was similar to the one that had affected his teammate Franco Colapinto the previous day.
On track, drivers were seen pushing the cars harder, especially in Turn 10, which once again proved to be one of the most complex sections of the circuit. Several brake lockups and off-track moments were recorded there, partly due to the characteristics of the new cars, which are heavier and have different aerodynamic behavior, forcing drivers to go through that section at lower speeds and with greater precision.
Away from the stopwatch, one of the most striking comments came from Max Verstappen. The Dutchman was critical of the feel offered by the current cars: “To be honest, driving these cars isn’t very fun. It’s a lot about management. It doesn’t feel like F1 used to. It feels a bit more like Formula E on steroids”. He also left the door open to a possible departure: “A winning car isn’t enough for me; it also has to be fun to drive. I’m exploring other things outside of F1”.
Lando Norris responded: “The rules are the same for everyone… We get paid a ridiculous amount of money to drive, so you can’t complain. If he wants to retire, then retire”. The day ended with several absences on track and will continue tomorrow with the final double session before the official start of the world championship.