Formula 1 · Race day
Bahrain GP · Race start 17:00 local · Sakhir
Race-day notebook is live. We track the pit-window decisions, the tyre-deg swings and the strategy calls as the laps tick down.
Race start: 17:00 local · 14:00 UTC
Circuit: Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir
Laps: 57
Competition: Formula 1 · 2026
Updated:
Race-day notebook
14:25 UTC · Grid is set. Two cars from the second row are starting on the medium compound, the rest on softs. The strategy window is unusually tight given the tyre-deg numbers from FP2.
13:50 UTC · Strategy read. The undercut window opens around lap 14. The leading two cars have medium tyres, which means the undercut threat is high if the second-row cars pit early.
13:20 UTC · Track temperature rising. The first three sectors are running 4°C hotter than qualifying, which will move the balance of the cars toward understeer in the first stint.
Grid
- Row 1: 1 — 4
- Row 2: 81 — 16
- Row 3: 11 — 63
- Row 4: 55 — 44
- Row 5: 22 — 14
What to watch
- Whether the leaders pit together or split the strategy to cover the undercut.
- How the second-row cars manage the soft tyre in the first stint; the tyre-deg numbers from FP2 were the highest of the weekend.
- Whether the safety car window opens in the first 15 laps; the Sakhir circuit has historically averaged 1.4 safety cars per race.