Australia has been the season opener in Formula 1 for the better part of the last 2 decades apart from a few occasions. However, for the last 3 years, the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir has hosted the first race of the season, and it will be the same this year. With pre-season testing also scheduled to be run on the same circuit just a week before the start of the race weekend, drivers will feel much more comfortable during the Bahrain Grand Prix weekend having racked up a lot of mileage during the test.

However, this year, the weekend structure for the FORMULA 1 GULF AIR BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX will be slightly different compared to regular race weekend structures in F1. The weekend will kick off on Thursday instead of the usual Fridays and the race will be held on Saturday instead of the usual Sundays. It’s worth noting that this is one out of the three weekends on the 2024 calendar when the race will take place on a Saturday. The decision has been taken to accommodate the beginning of Ramadan following the subsequent event in the calendar.

Bahrain GP Schedule: 29th February to 2nd March, 2024

Since the Bahrain Grand Prix will not host a Sprint Race, the weekend structure will have the usual 3 Free Practice Sessions followed by qualifying and then the race. The first 2 practice sessions will be held on Thursday, each lasting 60 minutes. Friday will consist of the 3rd Free Practice Session (60 minutes) followed by the 60-minute Qualifying session (Q1, Q2, and Q3) locking the grid for the race on Saturday (The timing for the qualifying session may depend on the on-track incidents as yellow flags and red flags cause the qualifying timer to stop). The race will span 57 laps around the 5.412-kilometer track or 120 minutes from lights out.

Bahrain Grand Prix Practice 1: Thursday, February 29th

All times are in 24-hour format

New York, NY, USA: 06:30 – 07:30 EST

Los Angeles, CA, USA: 3:30 – 4:30 PST

London, UK: 11:30 – 12:30 GMT

Bahrain Grand Prix Practice 2: Thursday, February 29th

New York, NY USA: 10:00 – 11:00 EST

Los Angeles, CA, USA: 07:00 – 08:00 PST

London, UK: 15:00 – 16:00 GMT

Bahrain Grand Prix Practice 3: Friday, March 1st

New York, NY USA: 07:30 – 08:30 EST

Los Angeles, CA, USA: 04:30 – 05:30 PST

London, UK: 12:30 – 13:30 GMT

Bahrain Grand Prix Qualifying: Friday, March 1st

New York, NY USA: 11:00 – 12:00 EST

Los Angeles, CA, USA: 08:00 – 09:00 PST

London, UK: 16:00 – 17:00 GMT

Bahrain Grand Prix Race: Saturday, March 2nd

New York, NY USA: 10:00 EST

Los Angeles, CA, USA: 07:00 PST

London, UK: 15:00 GMT

READ MORE: Why Is the Star-Studded Bahrain GP Held Under the Night Sky?

Where to Watch the upcoming 2024 Bahrain Grand Prix?

New York, NY USA: ABC, ESPN, ESPN Deportes

Los Angeles, CA, USA: ABC, ESPN, ESPN Deportes

London, UK: Sky Sports, Channel 4 (C4)

For other regions, you can always use the F1 TV mobile application or the website to stream the race and all the other sessions live with a host of added benefits like Live driver cam, Live leaderboard data, Real-time telemetry, and a lot of other exciting features.

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What are your predictions for the 2024 Bahrain Grand Prix? Do you think Max Verstappen will resume from where he left off in 2023 or will the other teams bring the fight to the Red Bulls? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.