SUMMARY OF THE FIRST F1 COLLECTIVE TESTS OF 2026
The 2026 Formula 1 season started today with the first day of pre-season testing at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. Several teams were on track, including Mercedes, Alpine, Red Bull, Audi, Haas and Cadillac, while Ferrari, McLaren and Aston Martin did not run.
As soon as the pit lane opened at 09:00, Mercedes and Alpine sent Andrea Kimi Antonelli and Franco Colapinto onto the circuit. Audi and Racing Bulls soon followed. Early lap times were slow as teams focused on checking their new cars.
Mercedes quickly stood out for doing many laps. Antonelli led the running in the morning and was the first to set a fast time with a 1:22.352. Haas also focused on long runs, with Esteban Ocon completing more laps than anyone else.
The session was stopped several times by red flags. Colapinto’s Alpine stopped near the pit lane, Bortoleto’s Audi stopped at Turn 11, and later Liam Lawson stopped on the main straight during a practice start.
Before lunch, Isack Hadjar moved to the top of the timesheets and kept improving his lap time, showing strong pace for Red Bull, but just after that, Liam Lawson got an anti-stall while practicing the start procedure and the session got red flagged for the third time.
In the afternoon, drivers switched to longer runs, especially Ocon and Russell. The lap times continued to fall.
Late in the day, George Russell briefly became the fastest driver with a 1:18.696, but Hadjar soon went quicker with a 1:18.452. Colapinto climbed to third place, between the two Mercedes cars.
The times at 17:10 were:
Hadjar – 1:18.452
Russell – 1:18.696
Colapinto – 1:20.189
Antonelli – 1:20.700
Lawson – 1:21.513
Ocon – 1:22.920
Bottas – 1:24.651
Bortoleto – 1:25.296
Pérez – no time
At 17:20, Sergio Pérez completed his first flying lap of the session, setting a benchmark time of 1:25.974, which placed him ninth on the timesheet at that stage.
Shortly after, at 17:27, Franco Colapinto returned to the track, joined by Isack Hadjar and Esteban Ocon. Hadjar was already leading the day’s classification, having posted an impressive 1:18.159, the fastest lap of the session.
The session concluded at 18:00, marking the end of the first test day in Barcelona. The final standings saw Hadjar on top, followed by George Russell and Colapinto, while Pérez finished the day in ninth position.
Final Day 1 Classification:
- Isack Hadjar – 1:18.159
- George Russell – 1:18.696
- Franco Colapinto – 1:20.189
- Andrea Kimi Antonelli – 1:20.700
- Esteban Ocon – 1:21.309
- Liam Lawson – 1:21.513
- Valtteri Bottas – 1:24.651
- Gabriel Bortoleto – 1:25.296
- Sergio Pérez – 1:25.974
The total laps per power unit was: 1.  Mercedes – 209, 2. Ferrari – 198, 3. Red Bull – 195, 4. Audi – 27, as per The Race.
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