The new Formula One season is about to begin. The test days in Barcelona get underway on Wednesday, February 23, and the teams are getting ready for a busy week. Mercedes have announced their schedule for the first day of testing.
On the first day, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton will alternate testing the W13 at the Barcelona circuit. Russell will be in action during the morning session, and Hamilton will take over from his new teammate in the afternoon.
Mercedes don't immediately announce the full schedule, but we can expect the team to alternate sessions between the two drivers. Hamilton would then be in action on Thursday in the morning, and Russell just in the afternoon session. Aston Martin and Williams, among others, work with the same rotating schedule. The drivers thus get an impression of the car at different times during the day.
Verstappen and Hamilton
The full list of drivers can be found in this article. Max Verstappen will also be in action on the first day and will therefore share the track in the afternoon with his rival from 2021, Hamilton. The test days are even more important this year, because with the new regulations a lot has changed to the cars.