F1 testing in Bahrain: What time does Daniel Ricciardo start?

The Aussie F1 superstar’s long-awaited McLaren debut is just hours away. Here’s everything you need to know before he hits the track.

Formula One cars will roar back on track as pre-season testing gets underway in Bahrain from Friday night.

This season there will be only three days of testing, rather than the usual eight days, and they will be held at the Sakhir circuit, rather than in Barcelona.

THE FORMAT

The sessions will take place from March 12-14 with all 10 teams and 20 drivers taking part.

Each of the three days will see the Bahrain GP track opened for a total of eight hours, starting at 10am local time (6pm AEDT) until 2pm (10pm) for a lunch break.

The drivers will be strapped back in for 3pm (11pm) until 7pm (3am).

Australia’s Daniel Ricciardo will drive his first serious laps in a McLaren — and his first with the Mercedes power unit — after switching from Renault ahead of the season. He will be in action in the morning session on day one, before teammate Lando Norris takes part in the afternoon.

The beautiful sight of Daniel Ricciardo with helmet hair means the F1 season is close.

Most teams will split the driving allocation fairly across their drivers although Williams will give a day to their development driver Roy Nissany.

ANY NEW DRIVERS?

There will be debuts for Yuki Tsunoda, who has joined AlphaTauri after impressing in Formula 2 last season.

Mick Schuamcher, the son of seven-time champion Michael will also make his full F1 appearance alongside fellow Haas rookie, Nakita Mazepin.

Two-time world champion Fernando Alonso is also making his comeback after a two-year absence.

WHAT ELSE IS NEW?

Aside from the three debutants and Alonso’s return, the Renault team has been rebranded as Alpine.

Racing Point, who used to be Force India, have become Aston Martin F1, bringing the British car brand back to F1 for the first time in 60 years.

While the calendar is still subject to change, there are two new races planned for the Netherlands and Saudi Arabia.

HOW CAN I WATCH?

Unfortunately for Australian viewers, pre-season testing will not be broadcast. But you can stream every practice, qualifier and race of the 2021 FIA Formula One World Championship live and on-demand on Kayo. New to Kayo? Try 14-Days Free Now >

Daniel Ricciardo looks on in the paddock ahead of Formula 1 Testing at Bahrain International Circuit on March 11. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

WHO IS MISSING?

Alfa Romeo team chief Frederic Vasseur has tested positive for COVID-19 and will miss pre-season testing.

However, governing body FIA insisted that no other members of the Alfa Romeo team have been affected and that the three-day test in the Gulf will continue as planned.

“During pre-event PCR testing for the Bahrain Formula 1 tests, team principal Frederic Vasseur returned a positive result for COVID-19,” said the FIA in a statement.

“According to the protocols set out by the French authorities, he immediately self-isolated at his home.

“He will not travel to Bahrain and will continue to isolate at home for the next seven days.” Alfa Romeo will again have former world champion Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi behind the wheel for the world championship

ANY RULE CHANGES?

A lot of the car design rules have been carried over from last year to save costs.

This year a cost cap is in place to reduce the amount teams spend on their cars.

The idea is that by reducing that spending gap, it will make the smaller team’s more competitive, but let’s see.

There are some car regulations which have reduced the downforce by around 10 per cent, so this year’s cars are thought to be slower.

But that allows them to race closer together and in turn improves the show.

— The Sun with AFP