Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2024
Event Overview
BIC is set to celebrate its 20th anniversary next year, as the opening round of the 2024 season and its first-ever Saturday night race at the Home of Motorsport in the Middle East on 29 February to 2 March 2024.
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Hospitality
Due to exceptional demand, we have continued to expand our hospitality offerings. This year, we are delighted to offer The Dome Lounge by F1 Experiences, as well as The Champions Club, both tailor-made in response to the massive interest in hospitality options for the grand prix. In addition, the ultimate in world-class hospitality is available in The Paddock Cub Please note that Corporate boxes for 2024 are now sold out.
View MoreRicciardo tops first practice timesheet in Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2024
Ricciardo tops first practice timesheet in Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2024
- RB star sets early F1 pace in his VCARB 01 contender
- Hadjar quickest in F2 practice, Browning leads F3 field
- Oeverhaus leads field in opening PCCME practice
- Zedd set for fantastic live show Friday night, F1 driver interviews to continue
Daniel Ricciardo kicked off the new Formula 1 season by topping the first practice timesheet today in the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2024.
The Kingdom’s 20th anniversary celebrations are now officially underway at Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) in Sakhir, showcasing “20 Years of a Modern Classic”.
Ricciardo steered his RB contender to a fastest lap of one minute 32.869 seconds around the 5.412-kilometre track at “The Home of Motorsport in Middle East”. He completed 23 laps in his VCARB 01 car.
Racing thrills and the grand prix’s biggest-ever off-track entertainment programme continue Friday (Editor’s note: 1 March) at BIC. Gates are scheduled to open to fans from 9am to 11pm.
With BIC’s grandstands completely sold out, fans wishing to be a part of F1 history this race weekend can still take advantage of two of BIC’s hospitality options: The Dome by F1 Experiences and The Champions Club.
There is some availability in each, both of which offer exclusive experiences in an unmatched setting. The Dome by F1 Experiences and The Champions Club are specially curated hospitality options created in cooperation with F1 Experiences for the most passionate of F1 enthusiasts.
To purchase these hospitality packages, go to bahraingp.com, call the BIC Hotline on +973-17450000, or visit the BIC stand at City Centre Bahrain.
Today’s hour-long first practice session took place in sunny conditions.
Ricciardo was followed on the times by Lando Norris, who was a mere 0.032 seconds off the leading pace.
Norris’s McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri came third in the classification 0.244s adrift, while Yuki Tsunoda put both RB cars in the top four, trailing Ricciardo by just 0.314s.
Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin was fifth 0.324s back. Three-time defending drivers’ world champion Max Verstappen of Red Bull was sixth 0.369s from the summit, while George Russell of Mercedes and Charles Leclerc of Ferrari were seventh and eighth, going 0.382s and 0.399s slower, respectively.
Lewis Hamilton (+0.433s) of Mercedes and Valtteri Bottas (+0.485s) of Kick Sauber rounded off the top 10.
Completing the session’s classification were Carlos Sainz of Ferrari, Sergio Perez of Red Bull, Alexander Albon of Williams, Lance Stroll of Aston Martin, Zhou Guanyu of Kick Sauber, Logan Sargeant of Williams, Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly of Alpine, and the Haas tandem of Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg.
Hadjar goes top in F2 practice
Isack Hadjar of Campos Racing topped the practice timesheet today in the opening round of the FIA Formula 2 Championship, being held in support of the F1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2024.
Hadjar posted a fastest lap time of 1:45.099 while completing 18 total laps in the 45-minute session.
Franco Colapinto of MP Motorsport was second in the 22-car classification with a 1:45.236 lap, while Rodin Motorsport’s Zane Maloney came third with a 1:45.588 time.
Rounding off the top eight were Ritomo Miyata of Rodin, Dennis Hauger of MP, Jak Crawford of DAMS Lucas Oil, Pepe Marti of Campos, and Zak O’Sullivan of ART Grand Prix.
Browning quickest in season-opening F3 practice
Luke Browning was quickest in the season-opening practice session of the 2024 FIA Formula 3 Championship, being held in support of the F1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix.
Browning posted a best lap of 1:47.828 in his Hitech Pulse-Eight challenger during the 45-minute session.
Leonardo Fornaroli of Trident followed closely behind with a best lap of 1:47.883, while Dino Beganovic of Prema Racing came third in 1:48.576. Behind them were Nikola Tsolov of ART Grand Prix, Santiago Ramos of Trident, Charlie Wurz of Jenzer Motorsport, Laurens van Hoepen of ART Grand Prix, and Sami Meguetounif to make it all three Trident drivers in the top eight.
The session featured the full 30-car field of the new F3 season.
Oeverhaus sets first practice pace in Porsche Carrera Cup ME
Theo Oeverhaus set the pace in the opening practice of round five in the 2023/2024 Porsche Carrera Cup Middle East, taking place in support of the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2024.
The German posted a fastest lap of 2:02.464 while completing 17 laps of work in the 45-minute session, which was the first on-track action of the grand prix weekend.
Robert De Haan from the Netherlands followed with a best lap of 2:02.500, while Flynt Schuring, also from the Netherlands, was third on the timesheet with a best lap of 2:02.527. All three are competing this weekend in the Pro class.
Leading the ProAms in the first practice was Ahmad Al Shehab of Team Kuwait, while in the Am it was Team Bahrain’s very own Shaikh Jaber bin Ali Al Khalifa to lead in class.
Zedd set for fantastic live show, F1 driver interviews continue Friday
Fans attending the grand prix on Friday at BIC will be treated to a live performance by multi-platinum, Grammy Award-winning artist, DJ and producer Zedd.
Zedd is scheduled to take to the main stage of BIC’s vending area, located behind the Main Grandstand, at 9.30pm.
All those with tickets to the F1 weekend will be able to enjoy the concert at no extra charge.
On Saturday night, a post-race concert by superstar DJ and producer Diplo will be held.
Meanwhile, also as part of the off-track entertainment on Friday will be the continuation of the live, on-stage interviews with F1 drivers and other popular figures in the sport.
These interactive sessions for fans are set to be held on the vending area main stage.
The first stars scheduled to appear Friday are Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, and Alpine’s Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon at 1pm.
At 1.55pm, seven-time F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton will be joined on stage by Mercedes teammate George Russell, and then at 2.05pm it will be the Haas pair of Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen being interviewed, along with Red Bull’s Sergio Perez and three-time defending world champion Max Verstappen.
Later on Friday evening, Mercedes reserve driver Fred Vesti will have his live interview at 6.10pm, to be followed by ex-F1 great and grand prix winner Jean Alesi at 6.20pm. The final on-stage interview of the weekend will then be held with Red Bull and RB reserve driver Liam Lawson at 6.30pm.
Fans are invited to follow the timings and be at the vending area main stage on time so as not to miss out on seeing and hearing from their favourite F1 stars up close.
Aside from the concerts and on-stage interviews, fans can also enjoy plenty of family entertainment including thrilling carnival rides; kids’ shows featuring some of their favourite Nickelodeon characters such as SpongeBob SquarePants, Dora the Explorer, Paw Patrol and Shimmer and Shine; an extreme circus; roaming entertainers; an F1 Fanzone bringing race-goers closer to a unique F1 experience; and so much more.
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