RACING: Lando Norris posts fastest lap time at Bahrain preseason testing

The first day of Formula 1's 2026 preseason testing at Bahrain gave fans an early look at the pecking order, with 2025 champion Lando Norris posting the fastest lap of the day.

Norris, who claimed his first F1 drivers’ title last year ahead of runner-up Max Verstappen, clocked a best lap of 1:34.669 while completing 58 laps for McLaren. Verstappen, driving for Red Bull, was close behind at 1:34.798 and led the day in mileage with 136 laps. Haas’ Esteban Ocon was the only other driver to reach 100 laps, completing 115.

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who finished fifth in last year’s standings, recorded the third-fastest time over 79 laps. Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton, a five-time winner at the Bahrain Grand Prix, set the seventh-best lap after spinning at Turn 1 due to a gust of wind.

Tuesday’s session saw four drivers—Isack Hadjar, Fernando Alonso, Liam Lawson, and Oliver Bearman—sit out, while the rest of the field completed a total of 1,143 laps on the 3.36-mile track.

– Field Level Media/Reuters