Formula 1, Sportrik Media - George Russell put Mercedes on top on the opening day of the second 2026 F1 pre-season test at the Bahrain International Circuit after setting the fastest time.
The British driver posted a 1:33.459 lap, the quickest seen at Sakhir so far, two-tenths faster than anything recorded during the previous three days of running. Russell drove in the afternoon session, while team-mate Kimi Antonelli was seven tenths slower during the morning stint.
For Mercedes, it marked another strong day, in contrast to Aston Martin, which encountered multiple issues. After losing significant time in the morning with Fernando Alonso, further problems saw Lance Stroll also lose valuable running in the afternoon.
One of the incidents saw Stroll spin into the gravel at Turn 11, triggering a red flag. It was the first such gravel incident since the introduction of the new power unit regulations.
Elsewhere, Oscar Piastri of McLaren was just 0.010 seconds slower than Russell in the afternoon, while Lando Norris was six tenths off the pace in the morning. McLaren completed a total of 124 laps across the day.
Russell also logged the highest mileage, completing 76 laps. Isack Hadjar was the only driver to run throughout the day, but a power unit issue cost him nearly two hours in the morning, limiting him to 66 laps.
Aston Martin recorded the fewest laps of any team, managing just 54 between Alonso and Stroll. Charles Leclerc set the pace in the morning before dropping to third by the end of the day, after being replaced by Lewis Hamilton in the afternoon, who also lost track time due to a technical issue.
The day concluded with a test of the new start procedure, in which all drivers remained stationary for five seconds before the red start lights were activated, as part of evaluations ahead of the 2026 season.
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