Formula (F1) Testing 2021: Date & Time to Watch, TV Channels, Live Stream, Schedule

Jenny Barry March 10, 2021 | 21:44

Formula (F1) Testing 2021: Formula 1 pre-season testing is almost here and it will provide a short and sharp blast of action in Bahrain as preparation for the 2021 season - Where and When F1 testing start? TV Channels, Live Stream and Everything to Know.

Formula (F1) Testing 2021: Date & Time to Watch, TV Channels, Live Stream

Nearly 14 weeks after Formula 1 departed, the championship is returning to Bahrain this week. Formula 1 is back, with pre-season testing taking place this weekend. Watch all the track action from the three days of pre-season testing in Bahrain live on Sky Sports F1 across the weekend of March 12-14.

The F1 2021 calendar is looking like a jam-packed affair with a record total of 23 races to savour in the coming months.

With coverage starting early morning on March 12 and running through the weekend, Sky F1 will be the place to be to watch the eight hours of live track action from each day - plus a nightly Round-up show and Ted's Testing Notebook.

Knowinsiders give you all the details ahead of F1 testing 2021 including dates & times (schedules), TV channels, Live Stream:

How to watch F1 testing on TV

You can watch F1 testing live on Sky Sports F1 across the whole weekend.

Broadcasts start at 6:50am on each day from Friday to Sunday.

You can add channels such as Sky Sports Premier League and Sky Sports Football channels for just £18 per month combined or pick up the complete sports package for just £25 per month.

In addition to the Sky F1 channel, subscribers can also watch the live action on their mobile by logging in with their Sky iD on the Sky Sports App.

The Sky Sports website and app will be the place for the live digital blog with updates, timesheets and free-to-view video clips of key incidents and interviews.

You can also follow the latest updates via the Sky F1 social channels.

LIVE on F1 TV

As the teams put their new cars through their paces and we get our first look at the 2021 pecking order, subscribers to F1 TV Pro*, as well as Sky F1 viewers in the UK, Germany and Italy, plus DAZN F1 viewers in Spain, will be able to tune into live coverage of the tests at the Bahrain International Circuit.

Coverage will run from 0650 to 1105 UTC (for the morning session) and then again from 1155 to 1610 UTC (for the afternoon session) each day, from March 12-14.

But there’s more. Alongside the live coverage, F1 TV will also host a daily Tech Talk show – analysing the latest innovations the teams are trialling for 2021 – as well as on-demand coverage of the lunchtime press conferences, due to be held daily across testing.

Formula 1 has announced it will be launching an updated version of their OTT subscription video platform F1 TV for the 2021 FIA Formula 1 World Championship, with new and improved features made available to more fans on more platforms than ever before. F1 TV Pro is already available in 82 countries around the world but is also launching in Brazil (from March 9th), along with Slovakia and the Czech Republic.

Developed with Accenture’s Industry X group, utilising the Accenture Video Solution and the AWS cloud, the latest version of F1 TV focuses on performance and quality, featuring an enhanced underlying platform, higher video quality and improved user experience. This is the biggest update to the F1 TV platform since launch in 2018.

The improved features will help fans control their viewing experience and make it easier to find new and archive content in F1 TV’s extensive collection, which features over 2000 hours’ worth of footage, and coverage of every Grand Prix in the last five decades. The F1 TV collection lets fans enjoy some of the sport’s most iconic moments in the Greatest Races series, find out more about F1 heroes, past and present including Michael Schumacher, through in-depth documentaries, and get a glimpse of the stars of the future with the latest series of F2: Chasing the Dream.

Formula (F1) Testing 2021: Date & Time to Watch, TV Channels, Live Stream, Schedule

How to watch F1 testing on TV

The new version is available on F1TV.com today, March 8, and upgrades will be rolled out on iOS, Android, Amazon Fire tablet devices and Roku in the first half of the season. F1 TV for Apple TV, Android TV devices and Amazon Fire TV are currently in development and will also be launched later this year.

Improvements to the F1 TV service include:

Enhanced technology: The new version focuses on performance and quality; users will now be able to enjoy streaming video at 1080p at 50fps for the first time – ideal for watching fast moving action.

Cast to TVs: – Users will be able to cast F1 TV using Chromecast and AirPlay (iOS) - enjoying live and on-demand F1 content on their TV.

Improved user experience:

Improved player controls – Users now have full control over the live stream; play, pause or rewind to watch that overtake again, across every channel, including On-board Cameras.

Improved channel switching – An improved interface allows users to easily switch between F1 TV’s multiple additional streams: Pit Lane Channel, Data Channel, Driver Tracker and On-board Cameras.

Improved user interface – A new, modern interface will allow users to easily browse and search F1 TV’s archive content, as well as F1’s exclusive series and documentaries.

Even more territories

F1 TV is available in 118 territories, with F1 TV Pro offering live streaming in six languages in 85 territories.

ARGENTINA, ANGOLA, ANGUILLA, ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA, ARUBA, AUSTRIA, AZERBAIJAN, BAHAMAS, BARBADOS, BELGIUM, BOSNIA, BOTSWANA, BRAZIL, BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS, BULGARIA, CARIBBEAN NETHERLANDS, CANADA, CAYMAN ISLANDS, CHILE, COLOMBIA, COSTA RICA, CROATIA, CURAÇAO, CYPRUS, CZECH REPUBLIC, DENMARK, DOMINICA, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, ECUADOR, ESTONIA, FRANCE, GHANA, GREECE, GRENADA, GUADELOUPE, GUATEMALA, HAITI, HONDURAS, HUNGARY, ICELAND, JAMAICA, KENYA, LATVIA, LITHUANIA, LUXEMBOURG, MALTA, MARTINIQUE, MEXICO, MONACO, MONTSERRAT, MOZAMBIQUE, NAMIBIA, NETHERLANDS, NICARAGUA, NIGERIA, NORWAY, PARAGUAY, PERU, POLAND, PORTUGAL, ROMANIA, RUSSIA, SAINT BARTHÉLEMY, SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS, SAINT LUCIA, SAINT MARTIN, SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES, SERBIA, SINT MAARTEN, SLOVAKIA, SLOVENIA, SOUTH AFRICA, SWEDEN, SWITZERLAND, TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO, TURKEY, TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS, UGANDA, UKRAINE, UNITED STATES VIRGIN ISLANDS, URUGUAY, USA, VENEZUELA, ZAMBIA, ZIMBABWE.

F1 TV Access, the on-demand video and live timing service, is available in 33 territories. To view the full list of countries, click here.

Live timing

To enhance your experience even more, full live timing will be available to F1 TV Pro and Access subscribers, bringing you all the features you’ve come to love over a Grand Prix weekend, including:

• Full tyre information

• Sector by sector timing

• Driver telemetry and position on track

This, along with the daily live blogs, videos and unrivalled analysis on Formula1.com, will help you keep up to speed on who is hot and who is not across the short but incredibly important test period.

How to Live Stream F1 Testing Online

Sky Sports customers can live stream F1 testing via the Sky Go app on a variety of devices including most smartphones and tablets as part of their subscription.

You can also watch the action via NOW TV without signing up to a contract.

NOW TV can be streamed through a computer or apps found on most smart TVs, phones and consoles. NOW TV is also available via BT Sport.

Where is F1 testing taking place?

F1 testing will take place in Bahrain, the location of the first Grand Prix of the season two weeks later.

Teams are likely to relish the opportunity to test in a climate – at night – that is more representative of weather conditions throughout the season as opposed to the usual track in Barcelona, which is usually an unhelpfully cold affair over the winter months.

When is F1 testing? Time & Date

F1 testing takes place between Friday 12th March 2021 and Sunday 14th March 2021.

The three-day event will give teams a chance to try out their brand new cars ahead of the 2021 season.

Usually they have more opportunities to test, but the delayed end to 2020 and the packed nature of the 2021 calendar means pre-season testing has been cut short.

F1 testing will take place across two sessions per day for three days. All of the timings are the same.

Each morning will run from 7am–11am (UK time). Then there will be an hour break before teams return from 12pm-4pm.