#Favorites #dont #pants
2:05 p.m
Small correction
If you’re waiting for the PK: It doesn’t start until 2:30 p.m. An innovation from the FIA this year that slipped through my fingers. Until now it always started half an hour after the end of FT1. That has been changed for this year.
So a short (forced) break before we get back to the press conference.
1:50 p.m
Before the PK…
… I would like to recommend our photo gallery with the best technology pictures to you again. As promised, there are now new snapshots, so it’s worth taking another quick look!
Photos: F1: Bahrain Grand Prix (Sachir) 2024, technology
1:47 p.m
Memories of 2022…
A little fun fact about the result in FT1: Two years ago, the then AlphaTauri team, now called Racing Bulls, set the first best time of the year!
At that time, Pierre Gasly drove a 1:34.193 in the first Bahrain training session and thus achieved P1. But that wasn’t a good omen at the time, because Gasly was eliminated from the race…
We are now focusing our attention here in the ticker on the team bosses’ press conference, which begins at 2:00 p.m. with the following guests:
Frederic Vasseur (Ferrari)
Zak Brown (McLaren)
Laurent Mekies (Racing Bulls)
Toto Wolff (Mercedes)
12:22 p.m
Open session ticker now!
The first session of the year begins in a few minutes and we have a small innovation in 2024: There will be no updates about the session during training here, so you have to switch to our session ticker now.
After the end of FT1 we will report back here as usual. And if you want to know how you can watch Formula 1 in Bahrain in the live stream, you can find out here!
12:11 p.m
What an engineer learned from the Bahrain tests
Because we just mentioned the test a week ago: Jody Egginton, head of technology at the Racing Bulls, saw two cars in particular that caught his eye this year: the Red Bull RB20 and the Mercedes W15.
He particularly finds the packaging in the rear of these two “very interesting” and describes it as an “eye opener”. He says: “Both teams did a few things that are different than in previous years.”
You can read about what else he observed here!
12:03 p.m
times
The track starts in less than 30 minutes, and here are a few numbers for comparison so you can put the lap times into perspective:
Test best time 2024:
1:29.921 (Carlos Sainz)
FT1 best time 2023:
1:32.758 (Sergio Perez)
Pole time 2023:
1:29.708 (Max Verstappen)
In fact, you shouldn’t expect very fast times in FT1 because it’s still too hot for that.
The really fast laps will only happen in FT2 in the evening when the track cools down.
11:54 am
Haas: There will no longer be two rookies
This brings us back to the driver market. At Haas, both cockpits will be available in 2025. So could there be a scenario like 2021 again, when two rookies, Nikita Masepin and Mick Schumacher, were put in the car?
According to team boss Ayao Komatsu, not so much. He explains: “When you have two rookies behind the wheel, it is very difficult to understand what the car is capable of.” With experienced pilots, however, this can be assessed much better.
He would therefore not think it would be a good idea to start again with two rookies. “For me, at least one driver has to be an experienced driver,” he clarifies. Let’s wait and see who that will be in 2025.
11:44 am
Hard tires
For information about FT1, which starts in around 45 minutes: Pirelli is offering tire compounds C1 to C3 this weekend. These are the same mixtures as last year.
And: These are the three hardest mixtures this season. The C0 tire, which Pirelli still had in its range in 2023 but was never used, has been removed from the range for 2024.
11:33 am
Russell: Morale wasn’t good a year ago
What is the mood at Mercedes before the start of the season? According to George Russell, at least better than a year ago! “I think morale was really pretty low at this point last year,” he recalls.
He explains: “We had worked so hard over the winter that we arrived with a car that didn’t perform anywhere near what we expected – not just in terms of lap time but also in terms of characteristics.”
Things are different this year. The car behaves as expected, “we just have to make it faster now,” says Russell, who emphasizes: “It’s always the stopwatch that counts. But at least the simulator correlates well.”
And that is progress compared to previous years.
11:22 a.m
Verstappen: Private life is more important than many titles
The Dutchman has already indicated several times that he won’t be racing in Formula 1 forever. He makes no secret of the fact that the calendar is now too big for him and that at some point he no longer wants to travel so much.
He emphasizes that it doesn’t matter to him how many more world titles he wins. He makes it clear: “I’m already very happy and proud of what I’ve achieved in Formula 1. I don’t have to stay for seven or eight world championship titles.”
“I have already achieved more than I could have ever imagined,” he emphasizes and explains: “When you stop racing, it doesn’t matter whether you were world champion three times, five times or seven times.”
That doesn’t matter at all for his life after Formula 1. “When you leave Formula 1, the book is closed for me and it’s over,” he explains. And maybe it won’t take that many years…
11:07 am
First Horner statement
The first training session begins in less than 1.5 hours, and Christian Horner has now also arrived at the track. The colleagues of Sky he gave a short interview about his situation.
“I’m just happy that the process is over,” he emphasizes, but makes it clear that he “can’t say anything about it” beyond that. The focus is on the Grand Prix and the new season.
When asked what this means for his future, he simply answers: “I can’t make any further comment.” He evades and explains: “I’m happy to be here in Bahrain.”
When asked one last time whether there was still strong cohesion in the team after the investigation, he assured: “It has never been stronger within the team.”
8:38 a.m
Analysis: Is the Horner affair really already over?
Red Bull GmbH officially confirmed yesterday that the investigation into the allegations against Christian Horner has been “completed” and “the complaint has been dismissed.” Which initially means that Horner will lead the team at the Bahrain Grand Prix.
But a very crucial sentence is missing from the energy drink manufacturer’s press release. Because while Horner was acquitted of the allegations, the statement did not explicitly confirm that he remains team boss of Red Bull Racing.
What is certain is that the investigation report represents a stage victory for Horner. However, there are doubts as to whether this necessarily means that he will survive as Red Bull Racing team boss in the medium to long term.
You can read all the exciting background information here!
8:30 a.m
These drivers drove for Ferrari and McLaren
Lewis Hamilton will not be the first Formula 1 driver in history to drive for McLaren and Ferrari. But only one driver could become world champion with both teams! More about this in our photo gallery:
Photo series: Prost, Lauda and Co.: These drivers drove for Ferrari and McLaren
8:21 a.m
Glock: Hamilton will eventually be “the fifth wheel on the car”
Expert Timo Glock has also commented on the upcoming Hamilton change. The former Formula 1 driver explains to Sky: “If Lewis Hamilton realizes he has a good package, he will [2024] continue to be very motivated.”
But there will come a point at Mercedes “at some point where Hamilton will feel like the fifth wheel on the car,” he believes, because: “He will then no longer be involved in certain conversations, the main focus will be on George Russell at an early stage. “
“So it’s not an easy and rather unusual situation for Hamilton,” said Glock, who explains that it was “an unpleasant position for him and also for Mercedes. During development, the focus is now only on one driver.”
And his name is now George Russell.
