Proceedings were brought to halt at the Bahrain International Circuit as a power cut on Wednesday red flagged the afternoon session of Day 1 at the 2025 Formula 1 pre-season test.
After approximately two hours of running, the Bahrain media centre was plunged into darkness, but the power cut was circuit wide.
As a result, the session was brought to an immediate halt with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc on top.
With daylight fading, restoration of power would need to be swiftly sorted in order for the remainder of the session to be completed, as dusk descended on the circuit.
It was approximately 30 minutes until power was restored to the Bahrain facility and the teams scurried back into action.
Still, there was no movement out of the garage, with yellow flags across the circuit as the Safety Car toured the 5.412km venue.
The inaction continued for more than half an hour as race control checked through its various controls and flag systems before the green flag was finally waved.
That brought to an end approximately one hour and five minutes of stagnation in Bahrain, by which time darkness had truly fallen.
With the darkness, temperatures also fell from their steadily cool rating of 14 degrees in the mid-afternoon, an out of character climate for Bahrain.
With less than 50 minutes on the clock, cars started to roll out onto the circuit, their new liveries bathed in glorious floodlights.
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