Ahead of the start of a new F1 campaign, teams and their drivers gear up for pre-season testing, which is the last stop before the real action begins. The main priority for the teams is to get as many laps under their belt as possible, to gather data that will help them understand their new cars.
Last year, we saw two different venues host the test with both Barcelona and Bahrain added to the schedule. This year, however, Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona won’t be host to the F1 pre-season testing anymore. There will be just one test this year, and it will take place at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir.
The 2023 pre-season test will span three days, with each day divided into two sessions. Teams will have their two main drivers and potentially even their reserve drivers put in laps around the circuit in Sakhir as they prepare for the upcoming campaign.
Why did Barcelona stop hosting F1 pre-season testing?
The Circuit de Catalunya is one of the most iconic racing venues in the world and played host to F1’s official pre-season testing for several years. The track was popular because of its mixture of high and low-speed corners which allowed the teams to test different aspects of the car.
On top of that, Spain was geographically close to most of the team bases. This means that they did not have to travel very long to arrive in Barcelona, which made logistics much easier and hassle-free. All these factors made Barcelona a favorite track for teams to test their cars on.
However, when Bahrain was revealed as the pre-season testing venue in 2021 due to the revised calendar, the teams noticed a very big advantage that the middle-eastern nation provided. This advantage prompted F1 to take the decision of stopping pre-season testing in Barcelona altogether.
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What advantage did Bahrain provide over Barcelona?
Since the 2021 season, Bahrain has been the first race in the F1 calendar. Hence, having pre-season testing shifted to Sakhir made a lot of sense for the teams, because they could set up at the circuit and use it for the Grand Prix weekend without any extra effort.
This made Bahrain a logistically better option than Barcelona for the most part. Another thing that F1 teams took note of was the weather. In Barcelona, the weather was considered to be ideal for testing conditions but it changed when they first arrived in Bahrain.
The hotter weather in Sakhir proved to be better for their data than the relatively cooler temperatures back in Barcelona. This was a huge difference that they note, and kept in mind while considering shifting the venue to the Bahrain International Circuit. Additionally, this track like Barcelona had the perfect mixture of low and high-speed corners which made it extremely favorable.
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When is 2023 F1 pre-season test?
In 2022, we saw both Barcelona and Bahrain host the test. The former, however, was a closed outing and was more of a shakedown, since no cameras or fans were permitted in the circuit. This year, the Barcelona test has been scrapped altogether.
There will be just one pre-season test held in 2023, ahead of the start of the campaign. All 10 F1 teams will take to the track from 23rd February to 25th February, with fans being allowed to attend the test on the last two days.
