After his initial outing with Williams, Carlos Sainz found himself quite taken with the capabilities of his new ride. However, he’s keen on dialing in a better balance as pre-season testing continues.
Meanwhile, Lando Norris of McLaren snatched the spotlight on the first day of F1 pre-season testing in Bahrain. He edged out competitors like George Russell, reigning champion Max Verstappen, and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc with his impressive speed.
Things took an unexpected turn with a power outage that threw the afternoon session into chaos. The blackout led to a session-wide halt that lasted over an hour. Once the circuit was up and running again, the session got an extra hour tacked on to make up for lost time.
Norris, who didn’t hit the track in the early stages, quickly climbed to the top of the timesheets. He logged a lap of 1m30.430s, beating Mercedes’ George Russell by a slim 0.157s. Max Verstappen, though off by a couple of tenths, was content with his Red Bull’s long-run pace, which looked very promising.
Carlos Sainz, having transitioned from Ferrari to Williams, had a solid start in Bahrain, securing the fifth spot, just behind his former teammate, Charles Leclerc. “Overall, it was a good first day,” Sainz reflected, considering the challenging pauses due to the blackout. “We completed our run plan and racked up a significant number of laps, which is the goal for the first day.”
He added, “The first impressions are good, but there’s room to improve both short and long-run balance as we move forward.” However, Sainz wasn’t the only one providing feedback from the Williams camp.
Alexander Albon, his teammate, pointed out some areas needing work. “The day went alright. We’ve still got some bits that need attention, but the core car feels quite reasonable,” he remarked. “Testing is all about figuring out the systems and fine-tuning what’s necessary. We’ve already had a couple of shakedowns with the car this year, so that’s promising, but driving time is always what we wish for more.”
Williams’ chief engineer, Dave Robson, offered his insights, saying, “Getting the new car on track is always exciting. It’s about discovering how it stacks up against expectations. We worked diligently during the FW47’s development to address last year’s shortcomings and to ensure competitiveness across various conditions.”
“Carlos’ assessment from driving last year’s car in Abu Dhabi indicated that we were focused on the right areas,” Robson continued. But today was about seeing if our hard work paid off. The conditions were cool and breezy—not the Grand Prix setup but quite helpful for testing the car’s steadiness.”
Both drivers made the most of the reliable car, gathering over 700 kilometers worth of data. “We’re planning the next two days based on today’s insights,” Robson mentioned. “Carlos will continue tomorrow before Alex takes the wheel for the final day. There’s a lot to accomplish in a short span, but with the strong start, we’re ready to push the limits over the coming days.”
