Six days of Bahrain testing are now complete, and the next time BWT Alpine Formula One Team takes to the track will be for the opening practice session at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne.

From reliability to refinement

After completing 318 laps (1,721km) last week, the focus in Bahrain for the second pre-season test shifted subtly but significantly. The first outings with the A526 were about understanding a brand-new car and power unit designed to an entirely fresh set of regulations, working through inevitable teething issues and building baseline knowledge.

For the second week, attention moved towards set-up direction, performance, and long-run consistency, giving both Pierre and Franco confidence in varying fuel loads, alongside continued work on energy management.

Shared running on day one

Track time was split evenly on the opening day of this week’s test, with just a single lap separating the two drivers’ workloads. Pierre completed 61 laps (330km) during the hotter morning session, when track temperatures were at their peak and grip levels at their lowest. Franco followed on Wednesday afternoon, running 60 laps (325km) as conditions cooled slightly into the floodlit evening.

In addition to the on-track running, each four-hour session this week concluded with a practice start. With the complexities of the new power unit for 2026, these launch simulations were an important rehearsal for every team ahead of the first race start in Australia in a fortnight’s time.

Franco’s full day of running

With 54 laps in the morning and 66 laps in the afternoon, Franco ran a total of 650km on Thursday to complete a extensive day of testing, running through various set-up programmes throughout the eight hours.

His best lap — a 1m 33.818s — placed him sixth on the day’s timesheets. That lap was 1.4 seconds quicker than his best time from the previous day and two seconds faster than his quickest lap from the previous week. That brought his cumulative mileage across the first two tests to 352 laps (1,905km).

Speaking at a press conference on Friday morning, he reflected on his first full pre-season.

“It’s very helpful to get to the first race with all this mileage,” said Franco. “I think it’s like doing eight races in terms of mileage. That’s something I’ve been missing last year and the year before, so it helps a lot.”

On the broader picture of adapting to the new car and power unit, Franco added:

“We are still learning a lot about the car and the engine. The power unit is very different to last year. It’s early to say where we are, but at the moment it’s going well. The progress is very steep. From one day to another, things change and the car is getting quicker and feeling better. We’re definitely improving and looking forward to Melbourne.”

Friday’s final day milestones

Pierre returned to the cockpit for the final day, completing 118 laps (639km) to bring his total mileage for this test to 179 laps (969km). His fastest lap of the entire fortnight came in the final half hour on Friday evening, with a late run on the softest, red-striped C5 Pirelli. His 1m 33.421s placed him fifth as the second Bahrain test came to a close.

Over the six days, we managed a total of 677 laps (3,664km) — equivalent to the distance of nearly 12 Grands Prix — to round off official pre-season testing. Focus now shifts to Melbourne and the season opener in Australia on 6-8th March.