Winter testing comes to an end: This is your guide for Day 3!

It has flown by again! The third and final day of testing before we really start racing in a week's time is already upon us. Max Verstappen was the fastest on the first day, Zhou Gyanyu on the second. Who will be best on the final day? Anyway, here is your guide for Saturday in Bahrain.

As has happened over the last couple of days, the third day will be split into two. Once again, the action in Bahrain gets underway at 10:00 am local time (8:00 am CET / 7:00 am GMT), ending at 14:15 pm local time (12:15 pm CET / 11:15 am GMT). The afternoon session starts at 15:15 Bahrain time (13:15 CET / 12:15 GMT) and ends after four hours at 19:30 local time.

Who will be in action on Saturday?

Morning (Start 8:00am CET / 7:00am GMT):
Red Bull - Perez
Ferrari - Leclerc
Mercedes - Russell
Alpine - Gasly
McLaren - Piastri
Alfa Romeo - Bottas
Aston Martin - Drugovich
Haas - Hulkenberg
AlphaTauri - De Vries
Williams - Albon

Afternoon (Start 13:15 CET / 12:15):
Red Bull - Perez
Ferrari - Sainz
Mercedes - Hamilton
Alpine - Ocon
McLaren - Norris
Alfa Romeo - Bottas
Aston Martin - Alonso
Haas - Magnussen
AlphaTauri - Tsunoda
Williams - Albon

What's the weather like in Bahrain?

It was our ultimate cliffhanger yesterday! We suspected in our preview on Friday that it could also be dry and warm in the Bahrain desert on Saturday. And yes, we were right! It will be around 25 degrees Celsius during the day. As the sun sets, it will be about 10 degrees colder.

Zhou was the fastest on Friday. Is the Chinese driver suddenly one of the favourites?

No.

Valtteri Bottas then, his teammate?

Also, no.

So what should we look out for during the closing day of testing?

At least not Max Verstappen, Logan Sargeant and Zhou Guanyu. The trio have already completed three sessions during these test days and are done! Nevertheless, the closing day is also one to look forward to. At the end of a test, the qualifying mode usually comes on, and we are going to get an indication of who knows how to excel over a single lap. Judging by the first two days, it would be surprising if Red Bull or Ferrari did not set the fastest lap of the week on Saturday night.

Driving fast times, then, is that the most important thing Saturday?

Certainly not for everyone. McLaren will no doubt want to try to find a better set-up as soon as possible because so far they have been muddling along. So much so that CEO Zak Brown is reckoning with a tricky opening weekend of the season a week from now at this same circuit.

Alpine have equally high hopes for the new year. Possibly the French will be the ultimate 'sandbagging' champions this season. But it seems that things are not going so well yet in the team of Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly. Not only are Alpine the team with the least mileage so far, the car also looks stiff and difficult to drive.

Mercedes lost precious time on Friday. What can we expect from them?

George Russell had to stop the W14 on the track with a hydraulic problem. What exactly was going on? Mercedes don't know. Or probably; won't say anything about it. In any case, Lewis Hamilton will feel blessed that the porpoising has disappeared.

Do we still need to talk about Aston Martin?

Definitely! A few days after Lance Stroll had his cycling accident, we still know little about his exact condition. It is unknown whether the Canadian will be able to compete in the Bahrain Grand Prix in a week's time. If rumours are true that he has broken one or more wrists, it will be a complicated story.

Felipe Drugovich is in the Aston Martin on Saturday morning. Does that make him the candidate to possibly replace Stroll? Hard to say, as it would benefit the inexperienced Brazilian to drive the afternoon session as well. That's when Fernando Alonso comes onto the track, as he already did during two sessions on Friday.

How to follow all the action?

Plenty to look forward to, then! GPblog will of course keep you updated on all the events on track throughout the day via a liveblog. If you still want to watch live yourself, you can go to Sky Sports in the United Kingdom or usually F1TV around the world.