Antonelli Shines in Bahrain Testing with Mercedes W16

The new Formula 1 season is fast approaching! This week, the first laps are being driven during the winter test at the Bahrain International Circuit. The first morning has already passed. In a rather unspectacular session, the drivers had the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the new cars. The standout was Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who had a busy day in the Mercedes W16.

During a relatively quiet test day, all teams managed to clock valuable kilometers with their new cars. As the cars strongly resemble those of last year, few problems arose. The session was only briefly disrupted by a skid from Liam Lawson. On medium tires, the young Red Bull driver took too much risk on the kerbstones, causing his RB21 to spin and come to a halt on the track.

Antonelli

The most notable performance came from Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who not only drove the most laps, but also recorded the fastest time. With a 1:31.428, he topped the time charts. For comparison: Max Verstappen took pole position in Bahrain last year with a 1:29.179. This shows that the teams were still heavily testing. The number of laps driven is therefore more important at this stage than speed. On this front, Fernando Alonso lagged behind: he only crossed the finish line 46 times, significantly less than his colleagues.

The nine fastest drivers were all within eight-tenths of Antonelli. In tenth place was Oliver Bearman, who was the only one to clock his best lap on hard tires, trailing by four seconds. This strategy is reminiscent of that employed by Haas last year – a move that proved successful for the American team.