21/02/2026

Ferrari fastest as Aston Martin ends running early

Ferrari has achieved the fastest lap in Formula 1’s 2026 pre-season testing, courtesy of Charles Leclerc.

The eight-time grand prix winner topped the timesheet throughout the day. He was quickest in the morning with a 1m33.689s; in the afternoon, he successively brought this benchmark down to 1m33.629s, 1m33.162s and 1m32.655s with C3 rubber.

Leclerc then bolted on C4 tyres and lapped in 1m32.297s, then 1m31.992s.

Nobody else beat Kimi Antonelli’s 1m32.803s reference from yesterday, with Lando Norris closest. The McLaren driver, who didn’t run in the first two hours of the afternoon, ended up nine tenths adrift of Leclerc in 1m32.871s, with the C3 compound.

Red Bull took third with Max Verstappen in 1m33.109s on Pirelli’s prototype tyres, the same used by Mercedes’ George Russell to set a 1m33.197s. It was a trickier day than usual for the Silver Arrow; it caused a red flag in the morning session with Antonelli at the wheel, due a loss of pneumatic pressure, and consequently had to undergo a power unit change.

Alpine topped the midfield courtesy of a late effort by Pierre Gasly on C5 rubber, the softest in Pirelli’s range, which yielded a 1m33.421s. That was just 0.066s faster than Haas’ Oliver Bearman, who set his own benchmark using C3s in a 170-lap day for the team.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes

Photo by: Steven Tee / LAT Images via Getty Images

Audi was seventh-fastest with Gabriel Bortoleto lapping in 1m33.755s on the C4 compound.

The only rookie on the grid, Arvid Lindblad, certainly made sure he was physically ready for his step up to F1, covering a remarkable 165 laps by himself (555mi, 893km) on his way to a 1m34.149s – two tenths quicker than Carlos Sainz.

Then it was the now-usual suspects at the bottom of the classification. As has become customary, Cadillac didn’t take to the track for the first 100 minutes of the day; the American squad still completed 99 laps and Valtteri Bottas set its quickest time so far, but that’s just a 1m35.290s, one second away from the midfield.

Meanwhile, Aston Martin completed just six laps with Lance Stroll, setting no lap times, as an engine parts shortage ensued from the battery-related issue Fernando Alonso suffered yesterday.

F1 Bahrain pre-season testing — Day 6 results

	Driver	Car	team — Engine	Best lap Time	Laps
1	Charles Leclerc	Ferrari SF-26	Ferrari 067/6	1m31.992s	132
2	Lando Norris	McLaren MCL40	Mercedes F1 M17 E Performance	1m32.871s	47
3	Max Verstappen	Red Bull RB22	Red Bull Ford DM01	1m33.109s	65
4	George Russell	Mercedes F1 W17 E Performance	Mercedes F1 M17 E Performance	1m33.197s	82
5	Pierre Gasly	Alpine A526	Mercedes F1 M17 E Performance	1m33.421s	118
6	Oliver Bearman	Haas VF-26	Ferrari 067/6	1m33.487s	88
7	Gabriel Bortoleto	Audi R26	Audi AFR 26 Hybrid	1m33.755s	71
8	Kimi Antonelli	Mercedes F1 W17 E Performance	Mercedes F1 M17 E Performance	1m33.916s	49
9	Arvid Lindblad	Racing Bulls VCARB 03	Red Bull Ford DM01	1m34.149s	165
10	Carlos Sainz	Williams FW48	Mercedes F1 M17 E Performance	1m34.342s	141
11	Oscar Piastri	McLaren MCL40	Mercedes F1 M17 E Performance	1m34.352s	66
12	Esteban Ocon	Haas VF-26	Ferrari 067/6	1m34.494s	82
13	Isack Hadjar	Red Bull RB22	Red Bull Ford DM01	1m34.511s	59
14	Valtteri Bottas	Cadillac CA01	Ferrari 067/6	1m35.290s	38
15	Nico Hülkenberg	Audi R26	Audi AFR 26 Hybrid	1m36.019s	64
16	Sergio Perez	Cadillac CA01	Ferrari 067/6	1m40.842s	61
17	Lance Stroll	Aston Martin AMR26	Honda RA626H	No time	6