Max Verstappen (27 laps) – 1:19:578 (best time in wet: 1:38:254)
Charles Leclerc (64 laps) – 1:20:844 (best time in wet: 1:32:088)
Verstappen is set to continue in the Red Bull. Will we see Lewis Hamilton in the Ferrari this afternoon?
Afternoon session now underway…
Kieran Jackson27 January 2026 13:03
Ferrari and Red Bull will now break for lunch, having completed a solid amount of dry-wet running this morning.
No word yet on top lap times from Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen, but both drivers completed a number of laps and no doubt collected a good amount of data on various tyre sets.
Max Verstappen at testing in Barcelona (Red Bull Racing)
Kieran Jackson27 January 2026 12:12
PHOTOS: Leclerc out on track in Barcelona
Charles Leclerc testing the 2026 Ferrari car in Barcelona (Scuderia Ferrari)
Charles Leclerc testing the 2026 Ferrari car in Barcelona (Scuderia Ferrari)
Kieran Jackson27 January 2026 11:45
No other drivers out on track this morning…
Kieran Jackson27 January 2026 11:40
ANALYSIS: Why Ford are ‘climbing a mountain’ in hope of powering Max Verstappen to F1 glory after 22-year absence
Just 39 days since Lando Norris’s title triumph in Abu Dhabi, the Formula One wagon is slowly cranking back into gear. Yet this time, those changes of gear are clunky and unpredictable. 2026 marks a deep dive into the unknown: new regulations, new teams and, for most of the field, new dreams. Disregard the usual gossip and murmurs. The truth is that nobody really knows what to expect.
And so it was 4,000 miles from UK’s so-called “Motorsport Valley” in the Midlands and Oxfordshire, which hosts six of the now 11 teams, where the love-or-loathe F1 launch season began in piercing sub-zero conditions on Thursday night. The venue was Michigan Central Station in Detroit, with temperatures around -10C, as Red Bull took to the stage alongside one of America’s biggest car manufacturers.
Kieran Jackson27 January 2026 11:30
Isack Hadjar, after setting fastest time on day one:
“It was pretty productive. Surprisingly we managed to do a lot more laps than expected. Everything went quite smoothly.
“We only had minor issues, so it’s quite impressive considering this was our first day with our own engine.
“Honestly, it was pretty decent for a first day. It doesn’t feel too far off from what I’m used to based on my first season. All the upshifts and downshifts were okay. There are still a few things to tweak, of course, but it has been solid.”
(Getty)
Kieran Jackson27 January 2026 11:15
Leclerc and Verstappen out there on wet tyres
Unsure if it’s full wets or intermediates (probably the latter) but Leclerc’s Ferrari and Verstappen’s Red Bull remain out on track despite the wet conditions.
Leclerc has set four timed laps, with a fastest time in the region of 1:46.
One hour left of this morning’s testing period…
Kieran Jackson27 January 2026 11:02
NEW: F1 signs ‘incredible’ multi-year deal with Liverpool’s long-term sponsor
The new partnership will see the British multinational bank support the all-female racing series, F1 Academy, and provide “enhanced trackside activations for its clients and guests.”
Kieran Jackson27 January 2026 10:47
With that initial downpour having passed, Leclerc is back out on the circuit for Ferrari.
Still no word yet on whether McLaren will take to the circuit today. If they don’t, we would expect to see them through all of the remaining days this week.
Kieran Jackson27 January 2026 10:33
Williams make shock call to miss first F1 2026 test after ‘delays’ in car development
Williams have withdrawn from the private F1 pre-season test in Barcelona following “delays” to their car development programme.
James Vowles’s outfit, who boast an impressive driver pairing in Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon, have long targeted 2026 and this new set of regulations as a year to work their way up the pecking order.
Yet following reports that the team’s 2026 car, the FW48, had failed the FIA’s mandatory crash tests, the team confirmed on Friday that they will not be present at the shakedown event for all 11 teams.
(Getty)
Kieran Jackson27 January 2026 10:15