The new F1 season is on the horizon with teams set to travel to Bahrain for pre-season testing, where fans will get a glimpse into who may – or may not – be competitive.
Drivers will once again kickstart an F1 campaign at Bahrain International Circuit with pre-season testing on the 21-23 February in the first bit of track action for 2024.
This year’s testing is just a week before the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix on the 29 February – 2 March, where much of what’s learnt from testing may come into play.
Will Red Bull once again be the team to beat? Is Max Verstappen on for a fourth consecutive world championship? Or, can McLaren build on its momentum from 2023 and close the gap to Red Bull?
Many more questions will present themselves, while much of the grid will remain the same but with two new team names as AlphaTauri has rebranded as RB and Sauber has ditched its Alfa Romeo guise.
So, with excitement firmly building for the upcoming F1 season, here is everything to know about pre-season testing where fans will also get their first glimpses into the new 2024 car liveries.
Sauber C44
Photo by: Sauber F1 Team
When is F1’s 2024 pre-season testing?
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F1 will stage its pre-season test at Bahrain International Circuit for a fourth consecutive year, where teams have just three days of running to complete their different testing programmes ahead of the season-opener at the same venue.
Having Bahrain as the pre-season test venue allows F1 teams to complete track action in representative hot, dry and sunny conditions. It also keeps travel costs down and remains in line with F1’s pledge to be more environmentally friendly, as teams no longer have to fly from pre-season testing to the opening grand prix.
However, before pre-season testing a team also undertakes a filming day – also known as a shakedown – where up to 200km of track time can be completed just to make sure everything is working properly with its new car.
Who is driving in F1 pre-season testing?
The F1 driver market for 2024 was very quiet as each team maintained its line-up from the 2023 season. The biggest news story over the off-season was actually a driver transfer for 2025 as Lewis Hamilton will leave
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