The Debrief: Test One, Bahrain 2026

The AMR26 has taken to Bahrain International Circuit for the first of two three-day tests. Read on for all the reaction from the team trackside.

Day Two

The team continued its pre-season testing programme with Fernando Alonso taking to the wheel of the AMR26 for his first outing in Bahrain. Fernando logged valuable mileage across the day, completing 55 laps in the morning session and a further 43 in the afternoon.

#14 | FERNANDO ALONSO

98 LAPS

Fastest lap: 1:38.248

Tyre: Soft

"It was good to be back in the AMR26 and get some solid mileage today," said Fernando.

"We worked through our programme and moved into longer consecutive runs, exploring different setups.

"Testing is always about learning and today was no different. It's clear there is a lot of work for us to still do and we need to improve our pace. The team will analyse everything over the coming days to make sure we are well prepared for the test next week and for the first race of the season in Melbourne."

A tennis ace swings by

Fernando was joined by another Spanish sporting great during a quieter moment in his schedule, when world number one Carlos Alcaraz swapped the court for our garage to meet his compatriot.

The pair chatted as Carlos took in his new surroundings, and they also had time to serve up a TikTok.

CHIEF TRACKSIDE OFFICER, MIKE KRACK

“We managed to complete 98 laps with Fernando in the car. Every lap counts with these new regulations and we don't have much time left until Melbourne.

"While it is only testing, we know we are missing pace; we have areas we know we need to improve and develop. Everyone in the team is working flat out to ensure we are in the best possible shape for racing.

"Lance is back in the car tomorrow and we will continue to gather data and learn as much as we can."

Day One

Though the car's first mileage came at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya during Formula One's shakedown week, Wednesday was the first time the car rolled out of the garage in its stunning fresh livery, revealed at the start of the week at Ithra on Opening Night.

Lance Stroll was behind the wheel for the first day of the first three-day test in Bahrain, getting the opportunity to familiarise himself further with the new car after driving a handful of laps back in Barcelona last month.

As Managing Technical Partner and Team Principal Adrian Newey and the team looked on, Lance headed out on track in the morning and completed 36 laps across the day. Unfortunately, the Honda team detected a data anomaly with the power unit in the afternoon, which required further analysis and limited his running.

#18 | LANCE STROLL

36 LAPS

Fastest lap: 1:39.883

Tyre: Hard

"Today was my first proper experience in the AMR26 after only completing three laps in Barcelona."

"We had a busy morning on track working through the run plan and the various test items. The afternoon was more limited as the team investigated a data anomaly with the PU. There's still plenty of work to do to get the car where we want it, but we'll use these two tests to learn as much as possible and keep building."

On track