Ferrari looked particularly strong in pre-season testing and is considered by many to be the early favourite for 2022, raising hopes that it might be able to end a winning drought stretching back to the 2019 Singapore Grand Prix.
The new Red Bull RB18 looked particularly quick, too, especially after the Austrian team introduced a major upgrade on the final day of testing in Bahrain.
The biggest question mark is over Mercedes' pace, with Lewis Hamilton publicly claiming that the new W13 is not a race winner as things stand. However, given the immense success Mercedes has achieved since the start of the V6 turbo hybrid era in 2014, it won't be long until the German manufacturer turns around its car - if its struggles in pre-season testing were indeed a true indicator of its current state.
McLaren was a standout team in the Barcelona test, but lost some of its luster when the field travelled to Bahrain last week - not helped by Daniel Ricciardo missing the second test with an illness later diagnosed to be COVID-19.
2022 Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix session timings in different timezones
| Session | GMT | CET | ET | PT | AEDT | JST | IST |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FP1 | 12:00 | 13:00 | 08:00 | 05:00 | 23:00 | 21:00 | 17:30 |
| FP2 | 15:00 | 16:00 | 11:00 | 08:00 | 02:00¹ | 00:00¹ | 20:30 |
| FP3 | 12:00 | 13:00 | 08:00 | 05:00 | 23:00 | 21:00 | 17:30 |
| Qualifying | 15:00 | 16:00 | 11:00 | 08:00 | 02:00¹ | 00:00¹ | 20:30 |
| Race | 15:00 | 16:00 | 11:00 | 08:00 | 02:00¹ | 00:00¹ | 20:30 |
2022 Formula 1 Bahrain GP session timings in local timezone
Friday 18th March 2022
- Free Practice 1: 15:00 - 16:00 local time
- Free Practice 2: 18:00 - 19:00 local time
Saturday 19th March 2022
- Free Practice 3: 15:00 - 16:00 local time
- Qualifying: 18:00 - 19:00 local time
Sunday 20th March 2022
- Race: 18:00 local time
2022 Formula 1 Bahrain GP session timings in the UK/Portugal
Friday 18th March 2022
- Free Practice 1: 12:00 - 13:00 GMT
- Free Practice 2: 15:00 - 16:00 GMT
Saturday 19th March 2022
- Free Practice 3: 12:00 - 13:00 GMT
- Qualifying: 15:00 - 16:00 GMT
Sunday 20th March 2022
- Race: 15:00 GMT
2022 Formula 1 Bahrain GP session timings in Europe
Friday 18th March 2022
- Free Practice 1: 13:00 - 14:00 CET
- Free Practice 2: 16:00 - 17:00 CET
Saturday 19th March 2022
- Free Practice 3: 13:00 - 14:00 CET
- Qualifying: 16:00 - 17:00 CET
Sunday 20th March 2022
- Race: 16:00 CET
2022 Formula 1 Bahrain GP session timings in the US
Friday 18th March 2022
- Free Practice 1: 08:00 - 09:00 ET / 05:00 - 06:00 PT
- Free Practice 2: 11:00 - 12:00 ET / 08:00 - 09:00 PT
Saturday 19th March 2022
- Free Practice 3: 08:00 - 09:00 ET / 05:00 - 06:00 PT
- Qualifying: 11:00 - 12:00 ET / 08:00 - 09:00 PT
Sunday 20th March 2022
- Race: 11:00 ET / 08:00 PT
2022 Formula 1 Bahrain GP session timings in Australia
Friday 18th March 2022
- Free Practice 1: 23:00 - 00:00¹ AEDT
Saturday 19th March 2022
- Free Practice 2: 02:00 - 03:00 AEDT
- Free Practice 3: 23:00 - 00:00¹ AEDT
Sunday 20th March 2022
- Qualifying: 02:00 - 03:00 AEDT
Monday 21st March 2022
- Race: 02:00 AEDT
2022 Formula 1 Bahrain GP session timings in Japan
Friday 18th March 2022
- Free Practice 1: 21:00 - 22:00 JST
Saturday 19th March 2022
- Free Practice 2: 00:00 - 01:00 JST
- Free Practice 2: 21:00 - 22:00 JST
Sunday 20th March 2022
- Qualifying: 00:00 - 01:00 JST
Monday 21st March 2022
- Race: 00:00 JST
2022 Formula 1 Bahrain GP session timings in Africa
Friday 18th March 2022
- Free Practice 1: 14:00 - 15:00 SAST / 15:00 - 16:00 EAT
- Free Practice 2: 17:00 - 18:00 SAST / 18:00 - 19:00 EAT
Saturday 19th March 2022
- Free Practice 3: 14:00 - 15:00 SAST / 15:00 - 16:00 EAT
- Qualifying: 17:00 - 18:00 SAST / 18:00 - 19:00 EAT
Sunday 20th March 2022
- Race: 17:00 SAST / 18:00 EAT
2022 Formula 1 Bahrain GP session timings in India
Friday 18th March 2022
- Free Practice 1: 17:30 - 18:30 IST
- Free Practice 2: 20:30 - 21:30 IST
Saturday 19th March 2022
- Free Practice 3: 17:30 - 18:30 IST
- Qualifying: 20:30 - 21:30 IST
Sunday 20th March 2022
- Race: 20:30
Can’t find your country or region in the list? Check the Formula 1 schedule page for the broadcast times in your local timezone.
Pirelli tyre allocation for the Bahrain Grand Prix
Pirelli will bring the hardest tyres from its range for the season opener in Bahrain. Teams will have the option of choosing between C1, C2 and C3 compounds.
