Want to watch the F1 season opener free? Follow this quick guide: The race gets underway at 6:00 PM (GMT+3) local time on Sunday, March 5. For all the F1 fans tuning in from the United States, the race starts at 10:00 AM (EST). It’s been a long wait since the season finale in 2022, but luckily this weekend is full of F1 action, from Free Practice to Qualifying. We’ll go into the full weekend schedule for F1’s long-awaited return later on. Keen on watching the 2022 Bahrain GP for free? It’s possible, and we’re going to show you how!
How to Watch the 2023 F1 Bahrain Grand Prix Free
There are several different free live-streaming options for this weekend’s race. However, you’ll be blocked from accessing them unless you’re within the country’s borders. You will need to change your IP address to bypass geo-blocking restrictions and gain access to these live streams. For example, you’ll be blocked from watching the UK-based Sky Sports live stream if you’re trying to access it from Japan. But, you can change your IP address by using a VPN to connect to a secure global server in Britain. Doing so will show the website that you’re accessing it from the UK, rather than Japan. We’ve got a quick and easy guide on how to stream the 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix for free below.
Step-by-step guide: How to live stream the 2023 Formula 1 Bahrain free with a VPN
2023 Formula 1 Bahrain: Free Streams
With a VPN installed on your device, you can tune into any live stream in the world — why not use the free ones? VPNs allow you to change your location to other countries like Austria, Belgium, or Italy, where you can watch Formula 1 for free, legally and legitimately, on streaming sites. Unfortunately, though, there is no English commentary on any of these broadcasters. If that’s a deal-breaker, the alternative is to use SlingTV‘s Orange Package. As long as your VPN is connected to a US server, you can sign up at a discounted rate. Below we’ve put together some of the best free live streams for Formula 1 races in 2023. Always make sure your VPN is active before visiting the website. Otherwise, you’ll run into those buzzkill geo-blocking restrictions.
Can I Watch the 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix with a Free VPN?
Many F1 fans try to combine their free live streams with a free VPN. It might sound like a great idea, but unfortunately, it doesn’t always work out that way. Here’s why:
Buffering and poor image quality: Free VPNs often have their connection speeds throttled, which leaves you with slow internet. That means you will have to deal with a buffering, low-quality stream during the most exciting race of the season! Annoying ads: When you’re using a free VPN, there’s a good chance that you’re going to run into some intrusive ads. Free VPNs need to make their money somehow, and the best way to do that is with constant pop-up ads. Half-race distance: Most free VPNs have daily data restrictions that limit users from using more than 500MB per day. If you’re streaming, you’re going to need more than 1GB per hour, so don’t expect to make it past the first round of pit stops on Sunday!
If you’re still not keen on paying for a VPN, try out Surfshark’s 30-day free trial. You can enjoy the season opener in Bahrain, the second race in Saudi Arabia, and the third race in Australia before canceling your subscription. Still want to try a free VPN instead? Take a look at some of our top free VPNs.
Watch the 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix with F1 TV Pro
F1 TV Pro is the perfect solution for any Formula 1 fan. As the official F1 streaming service, you get tons of perks with your streaming package. It costs $9.99 per month (or $79.99 per year), and they’re currently running a 7-day free trial, so you can try out it out for yourself at the season opener in Bahrain. With F1 TV Pro, you can switch between different drivers’ onboard cameras and tune into their live, unfiltered team radio during any session. You’ll also get commentary from Will Buxton (from Drive to Survive), James Hinchcliffe, David Coulthard, and more. If you miss any of the action, F1 TV has archives of previous races and sessions, allowing you to catch up on anything you missed, or watch some classic F1 races from the past. F1 TV Pro is available in 89 countries, but they will be expanding this year! If it’s not available in your country, simply use a VPN to switch your IP address to a different country. But, you don’t have to pay the full price for F1 TV Pro either. Here’s a quick tip. Launch your VPN and connect to a server in India and you can drop your subscription price to just $29.99 per year (2449 INR). There are plenty of other ways you can save money on subscriptions using a VPN too.
2023 Formula 1 Bahrain Full Schedule
F1 Bahrain Grand Prix will start at 6:00 PM local time (GMT+3) on Sunday, Mar. 5, 2023, at the Sakhir International Circuit. The cars are finally back on track after the long winter break, and we won’t be missing a single session this weekend. Check out the full F1 Bahrain schedule below:
2023 Bahrain Grand Prix: What to Expect
The 2022 season is done and dusted, with Max Verstappen and Red Bull dominating both championships. Coming into the 2023 season, they are still the favorites. However, we’re expecting a serious fightback from Ferrari and Mercedes this year. There might even be an underdog rising up in Aston Martin too.
Musical Chairs: F1 Edition
We got the most interesting F1 silly season in history last year, with tons of drivers moving around. If you’re unsure of what to expect on the new-look grid, we’ve got you covered below: Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto resigned from his position. In his place, Frenchman Frederic Vasseur takes over, moving from Alfa Romeo Sauber. Mercedes‘ head strategist James Vowles (remember “Valtteri, it’s James?”) is now the team principal of Williams. As for the drivers, Fernando Alonso has occupied the seat at Aston Martin that was left open by the departing Sebastian Vettel, who retired from the sport. McLaren signed a new rookie in 21-year-old Australian and 2021 Formula 2 World Champion Oscar Piastri. Piastri has been labeled as the next big thing in Formula 1 and was a sought-after commodity, with Alpine and McLaren even going to court to fight for his signature. We’re incredibly excited to see how he gets on this year! Alpha Tauri scooped up Nyck De Vries, who was previously a Mercedes driver but impressed when he raced for Williams in Monza last year. Pierre Gasly moves to Alpine to replace Alonso. This creates an all-French lineup for the French team in 2023. Nico Hulkenberg replaces Mick Schumacher at Haas. Schumacher has now been hired by Mercedes as their reserve driver. Formula 2 runner-up Logan Sargeant joins Williams to become the first full-time American Formula 1 driver since Scott Speed in 2006.
Who’s Hot for 2023
Following pre-season testing last weekend in Bahrain, we’ve got a small glimpse of what we’re in for in 2023. It must be said though, it is only testing and most teams don’t show all their cards, so any of these predictions can be completely wrong. When comparing the lap times to last year’s pre-season test, most of the cars are around two seconds faster, which indicates that serious progress was made over the winter break. Red Bull already seems like the clear favorite. Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez were extremely comfortable in their cars and they were topping the time sheets day in and day out for the three-day test. It’s unclear where Ferrari is at the moment, but they naturally would fall into second place considering their car was incredibly fast last season. Despite some small rule changes over the winter break, it’s unlikely that they’ve gone backward. Mercedes made a return to their iconic all-black livery. However, they have stuck with their “zero-pod” concept and it may have cost them. There are rumors that Merc has a B-spec car up their sleeve which may be brought in if their current model is not performing well. Aston Martin looks like the quietly confident underdogs. Their performances were dreadful last season, but they showed some great pace in pre-season testing. Alonso even stated that their lap times were on par with Ferrari’s — but remember, it’s testing! The rest of the field seems relatively evenly spread out. Alpha Tauri may have gone backward as they seemed to struggle for pace. McLaren was once again struggling with their cars, just like last season. Haas and Alfa Romeo will likely remain in the midfield, but they might be the best of the rest. Finally, Williams might be fighting for some points during the course of the season. It’s unclear what the Bahrain Grand Prix will hold. Never trust any data or lap times from pre-season testing (or even Free Practice). The true pace will come out during Qualifying on Saturday, and we may be in for a shock. Who will win the opening race of the 2023 Formula 1 season? It’s impossible to predict, but we’ll know for sure on Sunday!
2023 Driver Standings
We haven’t had any on-track action yet, so every driver starts with a clean slate. With the points reset to zero, it’s a good opportunity to look at how the drivers can score points during the Formula 1 season. The winner receives 25 points, the second-place finisher receives 18 points, and 15 points are awarded to the driver who finishes third. The rest of the top ten receives the following points 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, and 1 for positions 4 through 10, respectively. One additional point is awarded to the driver and team who sets the fastest lap if they finish in the top 10.
Formula 1 Official Broadcasters
Formula 1 is a massively popular sport all around the world. There are plenty of broadcasters around, and if you find yourself in one of the regions below, you may be able to tune into the race without using a VPN. You may need a subscription to the streaming platform, or access to a local cable TV. Below is the complete list of broadcasters for the 2023 Formula 1 season:
