Red Bull set the early pace as red flags disrupted the first morning of Formula 1’s opening test of 2026.
The test, which is closed to media and fans, is taking place from Monday to Friday at Barcelona with teams allowed to run on any three of the five days.
Red Bull, Mercedes, Racing Bulls, Alpine, Haas, Audi and Cadillac are all taking part on Monday.
McLaren and Ferrari had already communicated their intentions to start no earlier than Tuesday, while Aston Martin’s status is unknown amid speculation the car is behind schedule - and Williams is missing the first test entirely.
Details of the test are being kept largely under wraps and imagery and information is being shared solely by the teams and F1, but new Red Bull driver Isack Hadjar was quickest as the test moved into the afternoon.
#F1 The very first photos of this first day on testing!!! 🔥🔥🔥
— Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya (@Circuitcat_eng) January 26, 2026
📸 @F1 pic.twitter.com/7A6blwW19Z
He jumped ahead of early pacesetter Kimi Antonelli, who had racked up solid mileage early as Mercedes’ good preparation allowed it to complete more than 20 laps in the first couple of hours.
Mercedes stayed in the garage for the third hour and Hadjar made good use of improving track conditions to eclipse Antonelli’s time and then jump two seconds clear - an indication of how unrepresentative laptimes are so early in testing.
More from day one at Barcelona
Hadjar’s best time from the first three hours of running was a 1m20.3s – around seven seconds back from the fastest time of FP1 in the grand prix last year.
He set that time shortly after the test resumed following the second of the red-flag interruptions.
The first of 2026 testing was caused when Franco Colapinto’s Mercedes-powered Alpine stopped on-track and was swiftly recovered.
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The second took a lot longer to clear, with around 15 minutes of running lost after Gabriel Bortoleto’s Audi came to a halt.
A third red flag occurred around 1pm local time, caused by Liam Lawson in the Racing Bulls.
Unsurprisingly so early in the first test, there is a mix of run plans and early performance, with almost seven seconds covering the teams early on and new entry Cadillac slowest.
However, all the teams have managed well into double figures in terms of laps already - a massive improvement on the first day of testing with brand new cars and engines in 2014, when only four teams managed that.
