With Formula One’s 2021 pre-season test set to take place from 12-14 March, we bring a full guide to what you can expect from across all three days.
All ten teams will have three days of unlimited running to test out their off-season upgrades following aerodynamic rule changes, whilst McLaren face a more typical pre-season test in terms of understanding their new Mercedes power unit as well as their changes to their car.
Now here are full details from timings to driver schedules to key pointers as F1 gets set for a weekend full of surprises with just a fortnight until the 2021 season kicks off.
Circuit and Timings
Pre-season testing will take place at the Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir, Bahrain, for the very first time, as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic forcing the postponement of the Australian Grand Prix to late November, which made pre-season testing in Bahrain more logical ahead of the season opener on 28 March.
The three days of testing will be split into two four-hour sessions with the opening sessions commencing at 7am (GMT) UK time on all three days, with the afternoon sessions kicking off from 12pm (GMT).
Here are the timings in clear detail for UK audiences.
| Date | Morning Session (UK Time) | Afternoon Session (UK Time) |
| Friday 12 March | 7-11am | 12-4pm |
| Saturday 13 March | 7-11am | 12-4pm |
| Sunday 14 March | 7-11am | 12-4pm |
Driver Schedule Across Each Team
With just three days of running and just one car, teams face difficult decisions as to balance how much test time their drivers get in the car so here is the schedule plan for who will run when for each team across the entire test.
| Friday | Saturday | Sunday | ||||
| Team | am | pm | am | pm | am | pm |
| Mercedes | Bottas | Hamilton | Hamilton | Bottas | Bottas | Hamilton |
| Red Bull | Verstappen | Perez | Perez | Verstappen | ||
| McLaren | Ricciardo | Norris | Ricciardo | Norris | Norris | Ricciardo |
| Aston Martin | Vettel | Stroll | Vettel | Stroll | Stroll | Vettel |
| Renault | Ocon | Alonso | Ocon | Alonso | ||
| Ferrari | Leclerc | Sainz | Sainz | Leclerc | Leclerc | Sainz |
| AlphaTauri | Gasly | Tsunoda | Tsunoda | Gasly | Gasly | Tsunoda |
| Alfa Romeo | Giovinazzi | Raikkonen | Giovinazzi | Raikkonen | ||
| Haas | Schumacher | Mazepin | Mazepin | Schumacher | Schumacher | Mazepin |
| Williams | Roy Nissany | Nicholas Latifi | George Russell | |||
Tyres
Pirelli are bringing the full tyre range of C1 – C5 tyre compounds to this three-day test alongside a C3 prototype tyre, meaning that there will be some tyre compound colour marking changes as we explain below given that only three compounds are used on race weekend with usual white, yellow and red markings.
| Tyre Compound | Tyre Colour Marking |
| C1 | White – No Brackets |
| C2 | White |
| C3 | Yellow |
| C3 Prototype | No Markings |
| C4 | Red – No Brackets |
| C5 | Red – No Brackets |
Five Key Pointers
- Expect Mercedes to sandbag as is traditional throughout pre-season testing from the Silver Arrows.
- McLaren are set for a hectic test with new upgrades to test alongside Mercedes power unit, especially as reliability issues would limit running which is crucial more than ever this pre-season.
- Ferrari will be looking for signs of their power unit improvements boosting their standing in the pecking order.
- Haas are set to focus early on designing their 2022 car so this test is crucial for them to understand this year’s car, especially with an all-rookie lineup in Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin.
- Williams will be looking to build on a promising end to 2020 with several improvements to their FW43B.
Where to Watch Live Coverage
Sky Sports F1 will broadcast all three days of testing live in the UK in either High Definition (HD) or Standard Definition (SD) across the following broadband providers:
| Provider | Channel |
| Sky |
HD – 406 SD – 860 |
| Virgin |
HD – 506 SD – 516 |
| TalkTalk | 407 |
| BT | 425 |
| EIR Vision (Jersey) | 418 |
| Now TV | HD – 445 |