Kimi Antonelli, after two challenging days, ended the first Bahrain testing session with the fastest overall time. Unlike Max Verstappen, who has been very critical of the new regulations, Antonelli remains optimistic because there is still plenty of work ahead. “The imperative is to get the turbo spinning to reduce lag. We’ve worked a lot on downshifts and gear changes,” he explained.
Antonelli was like a lion in a cage. Before yesterday’s afternoon session, he had only managed to get on track for one of the eight hours available between Wednesday and Thursday. This was extremely valuable time lost at a stage where every lap is critical in the learning process of a completely new world—the 2026 F1 cars. His smile returned yesterday evening when he finished the session at the top of the timing sheet. However, when summarizing the three days of testing, Kimi Antonelli preferred to start with the difficulties.
“It was a bit of a tough test for me. On the first day, I only completed 15 flying laps, and on Thursday I didn’t even leave the garage due to a power unit failure. It was complicated, but we know these things happen, especially when taking the first steps with new regulations. I want to look at the positive side: it’s better to face unexpected issues now rather than during a race weekend. It’s crucial to identify any problems; that’s part of what testing is for. The last half-day, however, was positive. We maximized laps, and the car performed well,” Antonelli said.
With so little track time, Kimi Antonelli had to focus his original program efficiently. Beyond the technical aspects, the Bahrain tests highlighted how much the learning process is engaging all the drivers.
“I concentrated a lot on downshifts. I think all teams have changed the gearbox ratios because turbo boost characteristics have changed. The imperative is to somehow get the turbo spinning to reduce lag. We’ve worked a lot on downshifts and gear changes. Using shorter gears helps a lot, but you need to get used to it and optimize every shift. I think we’re at a good point,” he explained.
Regarding the overall feel of the car—a hot topic after Max Verstappen’s comments—Antonelli was not critical.
“It’s a different driving style, a different sensation, but honestly I’m really enjoying the car. There’s less aerodynamic load than last year and much more power on corner exit, which makes long runs tricky because traction becomes tricky toward the end of the stints. But there’s still plenty of adaptation work we can do, and overall I enjoy driving a smaller, lighter car because especially in low-speed corners, you feel much more agile—the feedback is enjoyable,” Kimi Antonelli said.
In the testing sessions Kimi Antonelli will have next week, the work will focus primarily on power unit and tire management.
“I’ll try to work on long runs because in the simulations with the C1 tires I didn’t do a great job; tire management wasn’t perfect. Melbourne is just around the corner, and after lost time, I’ll need to focus on the most important aspects, from long runs to qualifying. The start of the season is really almost here,” he concluded.
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