When Will Max Verstappen Drive in Bahrain?: At What Time Will Red Bull Star Roll Out in His New RB21

The long wait for the 2025 season is nearly over, with teams gearing up for pre-season testing from February 26 to 28 in Bahrain.

Just seven days ago, drivers were dazzling on the red carpet at the grand F1 75 livery launch at the O2 Arena in London. Now, they’ve swapped their suits for racing overalls as they prepare for one final dress rehearsal before the real action begins in March.

Almost all teams have already conducted a shakedown to dust off the cobwebs, but Red Bull remains one of the few that have yet to do so. However, they have scheduled a private session behind closed doors today at the Bahrain International Circuit itself, just one day before pre-season testing begins.

Red Bull has already revealed a first look at the RB21 in a digital launch, sparking curiosity among the F1 community about when they will see reigning champion Max Verstappen behind its wheel.

Of course, the aim during testing will be to get as many laps in as possible. However, Verstappen cannot be the only Red Bull driver doing this. He will have to share time with his new teammate Liam Lawson.

Teams are allowed to use only one car on the track for the entirety of the three-day test. So, Red Bull — like every other team — has to split the cumulative time equally between both Verstappen and Lawson.

Introducing… the RB21 pic.twitter.com/CZr4v0odue

— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) February 25, 2025

 

Lawson will kick off Red Bull’s testing program with the morning session on February 26, set to begin at 10 AM local time (2 AM ET). Verstappen will take over at 3 PM (7 AM ET) after a one-hour lunch break and go on till the end of the day at 7 PM local time (11 AM ET).

On February 27, Lawson will be behind the wheel for the entire day, while Verstappen will be the sole driver on the final day, February 28.

What is Red Bull hoping for in 2025?

After a tumultuous second half of 2024, Red Bull found itself in a tricky situation, with McLaren and Ferrari becoming considerably faster than them.

And ahead of 2025, Red Bull is widely expected to be third-fastest once again.

Red Bull will primarily focus on ironing out the issues that have emerged as a side effect of the aggressive RB20 concept. There was a belief that the team was reaching its performance ceiling, which led them to take a bold approach in reworking the dominant 2023 car — a machine that won 21 out of 22 races.

However, this redesign introduced a host of new challenges, weakening their competitive edge relative to McLaren and Ferrari. As they head into 2025, Red Bull will aim to eliminate these weaknesses, and the three-day test in Bahrain could provide an early indication of whether they have managed to do so over the winter.

Verstappen has already downplayed his chances of being a strong championship contender. “If we continue like this, I will not be champion next year. It’s that simple,” he told De Telegraaf.

However, if the four-time world champion gets a car that is good enough to stay at the front of the grid, he is confident that he can bridge the gap to have a fighting chance to defend his title once again.