The 2023 F1 season is just around the corner, which means that the excruciatingly long season break is almost coming to an end. Over the last few years, we have seen all 10 F1 teams reveal their respective cars ahead of the new campaign, as they all head to Bahrain for the official pre-season test.
Pre-season testing is one of the most crucial times for an F1 team because it allows them to test the machinery they had been working so hard on over at the factories. Before a season starts, a team wants to know what its strengths and weaknesses are so that it can make tweaks to the car accordingly.
During a pre-season test, F1 teams test out various aspects of the car like its speed while entering and exiting corners, the straight line speed, and also the reliability of the power unit. For the rest of the season, they won’t get the opportunity to carry out tests as widespread and elaborate as this.
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What do drivers do during pre-season testing?
For a team, the main focus during the test is to have as many laps under their belt as possible. This allows them to gather data, which they analyze so that they can maximize the potential of the car when the season gets underway.
For drivers too, F1 pre-season testing is very important. All 20 drivers suit up for the test so that they can get used to the new cars that they hope will guide them to success in the coming campaign.
The drivers want to be out on track as long as they are allowed to. They note down the strengths and weaknesses of the car and pass the message on to the team so that they can tune as per their convenience when the real action begins.
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When is the 2023 F1 pre-season test?
Usually, F1’s pre-season testing takes place right before the opening race of the season. Earlier, the test used to take place at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona because of the track’s proximity to team bases and its mixture of low and high-speed corners.
However, the opening venue of the F1 season was shifted to Bahrain in 2021 and since then, we’ve had pre-season testing take place in Sakhir. This year too, pre-season testing will take place at the Bahrain International Circuit. The 2023 F1 pre-season test begins on 23rd February and ends on 25th February.
Each day of the test will divided into a morning and an afternoon session. Most teams will divide their drivers among these sessions, so that everyone gets equal time behind the wheels of their new machinery.
Driver’s schedule for F1’s official testing
| Team | Day 1 (Morning) | Day 1 (Afternoon) | Day 2 (Morning) | Day 2 (Afternoon) | Day 3 (Morning) | Day 3 (Afternoon) |
| Red Bull | Max Verstappen | Max Verstappen | Sergio Perez | Max Verstappen | Sergio Perez | Sergio Perez |
| Ferrari | Carlos Sainz | Charles Leclerc | Carlos Sainz | Charles Leclerc | Charles Leclerc | Carlos Sainz |
| Mercedes | George Russell | Lewis Hamilton | Lewis Hamilton | George Russell | George Russell | Lewis Hamilton |
| Alpine | Pierre Gasly | Esteban Ocon | Esteban Ocon | Pierre Gasly | Pierre Gasly | Esteban Ocon |
| McLaren | Oscar Piastri | Lando Norris | Lando Norris | Oscar Piastri | Oscar Piastri | Lando Norris |
| Alfa Romeo | Guanyu Zhou | Valtteri Bottas | Guanyu Zhou | Guanyu Zhou | Valtteri Bottas | Valtteri Bottas |
| Aston Martin | Fernando Alonso | Felipe Drugovich | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD |
| Haas | Nico Hulkenberg | Kevin Magnussen | Kevin Magnussen | Nico Hulkenberg | Nico Hulkenberg | Kevin Magnussen |
| AlphaTauri | Yuki Tsunoda | Nyck de Vries | Yuki Tsunoda | Nyck de Vries | Nyck de Vries | Yuki Tsunoda |
| Williams | Alex Albon | Logan Sargeant | Logan Sargeant | Logan Sargeant | Alex Albon | Alex Albon |
