F1: 2024 Preseason testing starts on Wednesday

This Wednesday, the 10 teams will take to the Bahrain International Circuit, where the 2024 preseason testing will take place over the course of three days.

Here, we would get the first look at what the teams have to offer this season. Even though we’re not expecting any drastic changes to the cars, we still expect there would be some tiny improvements, and this is a sport where even the slightest change can make a ton of difference in performance. 

Already, from what we’ve seen from the car launches, some of the teams have effected design changes that make their cars resemble last year’s winner, Red Bull.

Red Bull’s 2023 season was the best in the history of Formula 1, ending with Max Verstappen, who won 19 out of the 22 races in the season, winning the world championship for a third consecutive season, while Red Bull took the Constructors’ Cup for the second straight year.

So, it is understandable why other teams would want their cars to look like Red Bull’s from last year – it does not hurt to copy the winning formula. 

Red Bull themselves launched a car that looked a bit different from what they launched last year. Even though their car has had our attention since the first day they launched it, they still insist the car has no major or drastic changes.

Maybe this is true. Some things may have been fine-tuned, as expected. However, Red Bull’s 2023 season car was one of the best cars to race on an F1 circuit, and it is hard to improve on such success in a year.

The preseason testing will follow the usual format we have seen in previous seasons, with morning and afternoon sessions. All eyes would be on Red Bull to see how good their car is and how much of a challenge they would pose this season. Aside from Red Bull, our focus would also be on Mercedes. Maybe this is the year they get it, right? 

The German team has failed to produce a winning car since the 2022 season, and it has cost them a lot, including their prized driver, seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton. While there is not much to expect from them, we hope they have produced a car that can be a title contender at least and maybe win a few poles this season.

Ferrari is another car worth looking forward to, especially since it was the one team hot on Red Bull’s tail last season. They have what it takes to produce a world championship-winning car, and maybe this is the year they get that done.

Leon Osamor