F1 Bahrain Shakedown - F1 Teams Gear Up for Testing

Following Haas F1’s track day yesterday, several cars were on track today in Bahrain for a shakedown.

Mercedes F1 conducted its second filming day after Silverstone, while it was the first for Williams F1, as we reported this morning, along with Alpine F1.

The French team has already shared several images of its A524 on the track (see photos and video below), before revealing more details tomorrow during the first day of official testing in Sakhir.

On the eve of pre-season testing at the Sakhir circuit, three Formula 1 cars hit the track this Tuesday: the Alpine A524, the Mercedes W15, and the Williams FW46. The three teams utilized this day to exhaust their available 200 kilometers of track time for commercial filming, to ensure everything was functioning as expected, and to collect initial feedback from the drivers at the helm of the new cars.

Unlike Alpine and Williams, which were debuting their 2024 cars on the track for the first time, Mercedes had previously conducted a few laps with its W15 at Silverstone in rainy conditions. Today, the German outfit truly had the chance to gauge the car’s initial behavior on the track set to host the season’s opening race.

Williams FW46 and Alpine A524 Debut

A second car powered by a Mercedes engine, the Williams FW46, also made its track debut today. As Team Principal James Vowles noted, the Grove-based squad opted to conduct its initial running in Bahrain, just a day before winter testing commences.

Lastly, Alpine was the third and final team to complete the permitted 200 kilometers of running in Bahrain. Like Williams, the French team rolled out its new car, the A524, for the first time since its unveiling at Enstone.

Following a radical concept overhaul for the 2024 season, the performance of the French car remains a question mark, and both observers and French fans will undoubtedly keep a close eye on the new A524’s performance, piloted by Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly.