Three days of Formula 1 Aramco Pre-Season Testing 2024 flags off today at BIC

TDT | Manama                                                     

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) flags off Formula 1 Aramco Pre-Season Testing 2024 today in Sakhir. The long winter wait for F1 action is finally coming to an end, as F1’s star drivers and their teams will be putting their 2024 contenders through their paces until Friday at “The Home of Motorsport in the Middle East”.

The tests will feature two four-hour sessions on each day. The first will be from 10am to 2pm, to be followed by a one-hour break. The second session will then get underway at 3pm in the afternoon and conclude at night under lights at 7pm.

Following the completion of all the F1 car launches over the past two weeks, the 10 F1 teams will be aiming to maximise the track time and get the most data on their cars’ performance as they step up their final preparations for the start of the 2024 FIA F1 World Championship.

The new season gets underway just a week following testing at the F1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix from 29 February to 2 March, celebrating “20 Years of a Modern Classic”, showcasing the Kingdom of Bahrain’s 20th anniversary in F1.

Reigning constructors’ world champions Red Bull will have three-time defending drivers’ world champion Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez testing in their RB20 at BIC. Ferrari will feature Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz behind the wheel of their SF-24, while McLaren’s Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri will be driving the team’s MCL38.

Mercedes will see seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton and George Russell in their F1 W15 car, while Aston Martin will feature two-time world champion Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll in their AMR24. Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon will be out on track in Alpine’s A524, with Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu testing in Kick Sauber’s C44.

The field is completed by Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda in RB’s VCARB 01, Williams with Alexander Albon and Logan Sargeant in their FW46, and Haas on track with Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen in their VF-24.

Pilot

The drivers will be taking turns piloting their challengers during each day, with team’s implementing their own schedules as per their testing requirements. In preparation for the tests, set-up work across the circuit ramped up over the past few days, especially down the pit lane and in the teams’ garages.

Fans hoping to get a glimpse of the 2024 cars on track before the grand prix will be able to watch pre-season testing on its two open days on Thursday and Friday. Tickets are still available for the tests. They are priced at BD5 for adults and half-price for children for each day, and they can be purchased online at bahraingp.com or by calling the BIC Hotline on +973-17450000.

Tickets to pre-season testing offer an incredible opportunity to witness F1 cars in action at a low price. Free entry to the tests is also available to all fans who had purchased their F1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2024 tickets before 1 February.

All those coming to BIC on the two open days will be able to watch the F1 teams and drivers busy at work from the circuit’s Main Grandstand, which overlooks the F1 pit lane and team garages, as well as the circuit’s main straight.

BIC is hosting F1 pre-season testing for the fourth year in a row and for the fifth time overall. Bahrain also staged in-season F1 testing in 2017 and 2019. For more information on F1 Aramco Pre-Season Testing 2024 or the F1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2024, visit bahraingp.com, call the BIC Hotline on +973-17450000, or follow the circuit’s official social media channels.