Formula 1 testing - day two in Bahrain

1. Good conditions in Bahrain

   

   Chris Medland

   F1 journalist in Bahrain

   The track goes green amid more good conditions here in Bahrain, where teams have been getting a good spread of temperatures to learn about cooling but more importantly the 2023 tyres.

   It reached 30C yesterday during the afternoon - quite a bit hotter than forecast - and then understandably dropped to much cooler temperatures for the running under floodlights.

   The first race might be here next weekend but the learning being done on this track is relevant to the whole season, with the night running providing tyre data that could prove helpful at venues such as Jeddah, Singapore, Abu Dhabi and the new addition Las Vegas later in the year.

2. Day one classification

   Reigning world champion Max Verstappen did almost three Bahrain Grand Prix yesterday as he spent all day in the RB19, clocking up 157 laps and the quickest time of the day overall.

   Alpha Tauri rookie Nyck de Vries experienced plenty of running in his new machinery by banking 85 laps, while Fernando Alonso in the Aston Martin, after a few floor issues, finished second fastest behind Verstappen.

3. Friday line-up

   With Lance Stroll out of pre-season testing after a cycling accident, Aston Martin didn't release their driver information for Friday and Saturday.

   But I can tell you Fernando Alonso is out on track right now and is taking the AMR23 out for a spin for the full duration of today's two sessions.

   Max Verstappen is back in the Red Bull following his massive stint in the car on Thursday, but the Dutchman will hand over the keys to team-mate Sergio Perez this afternoon and Saturday.

   

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4. Hello

   Good morning, folks. Welcome back if you were with us yesterday, big hello if this is your first day following 2023 testing.

   Thursday was free of stress for most teams as the lap counter ticked up and valuable data collected without fuss.

   Testing runs until 16:30 GMT, so make sure you have plenty of refreshments on hand over the next few hours.

5. Round two

   Ding ding. Green light.

   Shall we pop a race helmet on, lower ourselves into the car and go pre-season testing again?

   Strap yourselves in for another full day of going round and round the Bahrain International Circuit.

   

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