The Formula 1 season will be here before we know it and the ramp up to ‘lights out’ at Bahrain is gathering pace.
The first Grand Prix of 2023 is not until Sunday 5 March, but the excitement hits a new level as we go through February. With the exception of a launch date for the Haas, pretty much all of the key dates are now ready to be fired into the diary.
READ MORE: 2023 F1 car launches
As well as the car launches, the premiere of the new Drive to Survive season and, of course, the pivotal three days of preseason testing at the Bahrain International Circuit ahead of the first race weekend of the year, all take place in the second calendar month of the year.
Whether your diary is kept electronically, or by old-school pen and paper, here’s a very helpful list of the all-important dates to put in there…
Launches of the 2023 cars
At the time of writing, nine of the ten teams have now set a date for the unveiling of the car for the next season. Only Haas has not yet announced anything about the launch. The Red Bull Racing team will be the first to pull the curtain off the new car on Friday 3 February. View all dates below. This table will be completed when the remaining teams announce a date.
2023 Car Launch Dates Red Bull Racing – Friday 3 February
Williams—Monday, February 6
Alfa Romeo – Tuesday, February 7th
AlphaTauri – Saturday 11 February
Aston Martin – Monday, February 13
McLaren – Monday, February 13
Ferrari – Tuesday, February 14
Mercedes – Wednesday, February 15
Alpine – Thursday, February 16
Haas—Not yet known
Drive to Survive – Season 5
Formula 1 has announced, in collaboration with Netflix, the date on which the fifth season of the hit series Drive to Survive will premiere. The fifth series of the show, which focuses on the 2022 season, will be available in its entirety on the streaming service from February 24.
testing in Bahrain
The test days prior to the 2023 Formula 1 season will take place from Thursday 23 February to Saturday 25 February at the Bahrain International Circuit. Just like last year, the teams have to make do with three days, where in the past this has sometimes been six days divided over two weeks at differing locations.
Formula 1 season – 2023
The official start of the season then follows fairly quickly after the test days. Teams which run into major problems during these three days will therefore have to pull out all the stops to get their cars ready in time.
The 2023 Formula 1 season will officially start on Friday, March 3, with the first and second free practice sessions in Bahrain. Two days later, on Sunday 5 March, will mark the first Grand Prix of a record 23-race calendar.
