Bahrain Grand Prix live stream: how to watch the first F1 race of the 2023 season, Race Day

Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc at the Bahrain Grand Prix
(Image credit: Peter van Egmond/Getty Images)

Bahrain Grand Prix live stream 2023

Watch the Bahrain Grand Prix for free on Servus TV in Austria, or subscribe to ESPN, Sky, or F1 TV Pro to live stream the whole season-opening event live.

Use a VPN to pick up your usual stream from anywhere, if you happen to be outside your home country. Full details on how to watch a Bahrain Grand Prix live stream from anywhere just below.

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Bahrain GP dates:3-5 March 2023
Free live stream:Servus (Aut) | RTL Zwee (Lux)
Watch anywhereUse ExpressVPN to watch any stream

Bahrain Grand Prix schedule 2023

  • Practice 1 (3rd March) – 11.30am GMT /  6.30am ET
  • Practice 2 (3rd March) – 3pm GMT / 10am ET
  • Practice 3 (4th March) – 11.30am GMT / 6.30am ET 
  • Qualifying (4th March) – 3pm GMT / 10am ET
  • Grand Prix (5th March) – 3pm GMT / 10am ET

Bahrain Grand Prix live stream: preview

The 2023 F1 season is finally here, and with it has come the inevitable speculation and pie-in-the-sky theorising us F1 fans are so prone to. Could Aston Martin take a podium? Are Mercedes still struggling with last season's woes? Will Max Verstappen take home his first ever season-opening win?

Well, after Qualifying, at least a couple of those could be on the books.

Red Bull look as reliable as ever, but the hype train gathered steam as Aston Martin’s Alonso charged to the head of the pack in FP3. Things look a little more recognisable on race day, though, with Red Bull posting a 1-2 in Qualis. In 5th, Alonso is still an absolute wild-card threat, and we can't wait to see the Aston's true race pace.

Qualifying in 6th and 7th, the Silver Arrows looked a little better, but were noticeably off the pace of Red Bull and Ferrari.

Today, the big question is if Verstappen will be able to find success at his bogey track. After eight attempts the reigning champion hasn't topped the podium, and a win here will certainly bolster his ever-increasing confidence.

Further down the grid, look out for promising rookies Oscar Piastri, Nyck de Vries, and Logan Sargeant, racing with McLaren, AlphaTauri, and Williams respectively. Piastri in particular has made waves – not only through his on-track performance – so Bahrain will be the acid test of whether he can live up to expectations.

In short, the Bahrain GP looks set to be a thrilling opener, and anyone remotely interested in motorsport quite simply needs to tune in. To find out where to get an F1 live stream anywhere in the world, all you need to do is keep scrolling.

Bahrain Grand Prix free live streams

Lucky F1 fans in Austria and Luxembourg can pick up a Bahrain Grand Prix free live. There are also free, extended highlights available too.

Austria
Servus TV has the rights to stream the 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix.

Luxembourg
RTL Zwee has the rights to the 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix free live stream too.

UK
Channel 4 has free highlights of the race, plus a free live stream of the British GP.

Australia
10play has free highlights, plus a free live stream of the Australian GP.

Use Express VPN to access local free F1 streams when abroad

Watch a Bahrain Grand Prix live stream from anywhere

Most F1 live streams are location-sensitive. So, you won't be able to access your usual service when travelling away from home. A VPN (Virtual Private Network) is a small but powerful app that lets you select your preferred location and quickly unblock any F1 live stream – including free streams.

ExpressVPN is our pick of the best VPN services. It's affordable, fast and easy to use. Try it risk-free for 30 days and see for yourself.

Try ExpressVPN risk-free for 30 days
ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money back guarantee with its VPN service. You can use it to watch free F1 live streams on your mobile, tablet, laptop, TV, games console and more. There's 24/7 customer support, too. Try it – you'll be surprised how simple it is. Five stars.

Try ExpressVPN risk-free for 30 days
ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money back guarantee with its VPN service. You can use it to watch free F1 live streams on your mobile, tablet, laptop, TV, games console and more. There's 24/7 customer support, too. Try it – you'll be surprised how simple it is. Five stars.

For the best value, try the 12-month subscription

How to use a VPN for any Bahrain GP live stream

1. Sign up to the VPN of your choice. ExpressVPN is the one we recommend.

2. Open the VPN app and choose the location of the service you wish to access. For the F1, you may wish to choose Luxembourg for RTL Zwee.

3. Then head over to RTL Zwee on your browser or device and enjoy the free F1 live stream. 

You could also try NordVPN, which also comes with a 30-day money back guarantee, and Surfshark which offers 24 hour assistance. Both performed very well in our tests.

Bahrain Grand Prix live stream in 4K Ultra HD

Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP celebrates winning in Turkey.

(Image credit: Bryn Lennon/Getty Images)

In the UK, you can watch the Bahrain Grand Prix in 4K via Sky Q, Sky Glass and Sky Stream puck. You'll need to subscribe to an Ultra HD package and have a 4K TV.

Sky does not offer Dolby Atmos sound but subscribers can enjoy the action in Dolby 5.1 surround sound.

Need Sky? Today's best Sky TV deals.

F1 season pass for $2.99 a month

F1 TV Pro includes live coverage of every F1 practice, qualifier and race in HD. No ad breaks.

Fans in the US can subscribe for just $9.99 a month or $79.99 per year, while those in France can snag F1 TV Pro for just €7.99 a month.

In India, F1 TV Pro is just $2.99 a month or $29.99 for the entire year. New users get a 7-day free trial. Users can select commentary in six languages including English. 

The service is available in over 188 countries – but not the UK (you can use the basic 'Access' version app for live timings, but you won't be able to watch any races live).

F1 TV Pro is available via the F1 TV website, iOS/Android apps, Roku TV, Apple TV, Android TV, Google TV and other mobile devices.

Latest F1 TV Pro prices:

  • F1 TV Pro in India – $2.99 a month (cheapest)
  • F1 TV Pro in South Africa – $4.99 a month
  • F1 TV Pro in Brazil – $5.19 a month
  • F1 TV Pro in France – €7.99 a month
  • F1 TV Pro in USA – $9.99 a month
  • F1 TV Pro in Mexico – $119.99 a month

Bahrain Grand Prix live stream in the USA

Haas F1 car on track during Formula 1 testing in Abu Dhabi

(Image credit: Dan Istitene - Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images)

In the USA, ESPN and ESPN2 have the rights to commercial-free, live F1 races until 2025. Don't have cable access to ESPN? It's actually cheaper to watch ESPN on streaming services such as Sling or FuboTV...

F1 on Sling TV 50% off your first month

F1 on Sling TV 50% off your first month
Catch the majority of the 2023 F1 season with Sling Orange, which provides streaming access to ESPN. You get your first month half price, then it's $40 each month after. There's no contract and you can cancel at any time. What's to lose?

FuboTV Free 7-day trial | $74.99 a month

FuboTV Free 7-day trial | $74.99 a month
Fubo TV ESPN and ABC (plus CBS, NBC and Fox) so it's a great watch to stream sports, including the 2023 F1 season. The app supports Roku, Fire TV and iOS/Android devices. No contract, cancel anytime.

Bahrain Grand Prix live stream in Australia

Fox Sports has the rights to show every live F1 races in Australia. That means Foxtel and Kayo Sports subscribers get a front row seat.

Kayo Sports offers new subscribers a 14-day free trial. After that, you'll be bumped onto a rolling one month contract. One is AU$25; Basic is $30; Premium is $35.

Happy with highlights? 10 Play will show free highlights of every 2023 F1 race.

Bahrain Grand Prix live stream in the Netherlands

Ziggo Sport has the rights to live F1 practice, qualifiers and races in 2023.

Away from the Netherlands? Sign up for ExpressVPN, download the ExpressVPN app, connect to a server in the Netherlands, sign into the Ziggo GO app and start streaming F1 from anywhere.

Bahrain Grand Prix live stream in Spain

Red Bull F1 car doing doughnuts on the track in Abu Dhabi

(Image credit: Red Bull Content Pool / Rudy Carezzevoli / Getty Images)

DAZN has the rights to show Formula 1 in Spain until the end of 2023. The streaming service will show practice, qualifiers and races on its exclusive DAZN F1 channel. If you want a cheap Spanish F1 stream, you know what to do... 

Watch F1 2023 on DAZN for €9.99 a month

Watch F1 2023 on DAZN for €9.99 a month
DAZN has the rights to every 2023 F1 race  in Spain, as well as a host of other sports including football, UFC and more. And it's only €9.99 a month. No contract, cancel anytime.

Bahrain Grand Prix live stream in France

F1 TV Pro is the best option for F1 fans in France. Subscription costs just €7.99 a month or €64.99 a year  – that gets you full, live coverage of the 2023 F1 season, including practice sessions, qualifiers and the grand prix themselves.

Races are also available to watch on subscription-based French broadcaster Canal+ until 2029.

Bahrain Grand Prix live stream in the rest of the world

How to watch Bahrain Grand Prix live stream in Brazil

Band continues to offer free-to-air live TV coverage of F1 races in Brazil. Cord-cutters can watch on every F1 race live via F1 TV Pro for just 39.99 a year / $5.19 a month.

How to watch Bahrain Grand Prix live stream in Croatia

SportKlub is the place to find live TV coverage of the 2023 F1 World Championship in Croatia.

Bahrain Grand Prix live stream in Finland

F1 TV Pro offers an official F1 live stream in Finland. Subscription is pricier than in some other countries: €10.99 a month or €109.99 a year.

Bahrain Grand Prix live stream in Germany

Sky Germany has the rights to show F1 races in 2023. Austrians visiting Germany can use ExpressVPN to access free live coverage on Servus TV or ORF 1.

Bahrain Grand Prix live stream in Italy

Sky Italia is the place to watch F1 in Italy. Former F1 test driver Davide Valsecchi provides pitlane reporting while Jacques Villeneuve provides commentary.

Bahrain Grand Prix live stream in Japan

DAZN has been the home of F1 in Japan for several seasons. The sports streaming service offers deliver live coverage of every race and stats galore.

Bahrain Grand Prix live stream in Portugal

Sport TV has the pay TV rights to F1 in Portugal until 2024. Subscription to the firm's streaming service costs from €6.99 a month.

Bahrain Grand Prix live stream in Mexico

Fox has the official broadcasting rights to air the 2023 F1 in Mexico. Free live coverage of the Mexican GP will be on Canal 5. You can also live stream F1 in Mexico through the F1 TV Pro subscription service, at a cost of – hold onto your helmets – $949 a year! That's compared to just $29.99 a year in India.

Mo Harber-Lamond is VPN Editor at Tom's Guide, and contributor for TechRadar and What Hi Fi?. He focuses on cybersecurity content for Tom's Guide, and creates insightful content across the board to help readers make informed buying choices.