Bahrain Grand Prix – The best/worst of the editorial staff

The TOP 3:

1. Verstappen and Red Bull still at the top, as always

Same old, same old! The Dutch ogre and his Austrian team have once again outshone the competition in the Bahrain desert. Achieving another Grand Slam in his career (pole position, victory, fastest lap, and leading all laps), Verstappen seems more untouchable than ever despite Leclerc’s braking issues, which may have compromised the only driver in this first Grand Prix capable of holding somewhat of a comparison.

The triple world champion therefore signed his 55th victory in Formula 1 this Saturday. He outpaced his garage neighbor, Sergio Pérez, who secured a 1-2 finish for the team after a less impressive qualifying session (5th). A dream start for Red Bull despite a very tense internal situation.

2. Carlos Sainz shining in the night in Bahrain

What a race from the Spaniard! This Saturday, Carlos Sainz has been the main actor in an otherwise rather dull Grand Prix. The Ferrari driver outperformed his teammate Leclerc on track several times despite a strategy that was not necessarily in his favor for the first pit stop.

He then easily shook off George Russell to claim the third step of the podium just a few lengths away from the second place held by Pérez on a Red Bull faster than his SF-24. This performance earned him the honorary title of “Driver of the Day”. Despite still being uncertain about what the future holds, he shouldn’t be short of suitors with major performances like this one!

3. No withdrawals at the Opening Grand Prix: a historic first

Is this a good thing or a concern for the show? Time will tell. But the statistics are there: this Saturday in Bahrain, we witnessed a historic event, that no single-seater car was forced to retire during the opening round of a world championship.

The reliability of the single-seaters seems to be on point for all manufacturers despite temperature warnings for the Mercedes engines (particularly seen on the onboard cameras of Alex Albon) or at the level of the braking system on Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari which forced him to endure his race from start to finish. Nevertheless, the regulatory continuity makes it clear: mechanical failures should be less frequent this season.

The FLOP 3:

1. The disaster named Alpine

The descent into hell of the French team is painful to see. While the situation on the stopwatch level is not as catastrophic as it may seem (all the cars are within the same second in Q1), the race pace did not save the team this Saturday despite the futile efforts of both drivers. Starting from the back in qualifying, 17th and 18th in the race, that’s where the Renault group stands at the beginning of the year.

Development will be crucial to save what can still be saved. Gasly and Ocon, both Grand Prix winners and at the end of their contract this year, must show themselves to the eyes of the F1 world as the transfer market promises to be spectacular this season, with the already announced transfer of Lewis Hamilton to Ferrari.

2. With almost no shows, should we fear an apathetic season?

A solitary winner over 20 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher, a clearly defined hierarchy, a DRS train with few overtakes… The Bahrain Grand Prix was rather lacking in excitement this Saturday on a track known for facilitating passing maneuvers. Without a fired-up Carlos Sainz and a few other moves by his fellow drivers that could be counted on one hand, the race might have seemed even longer than it already was.

Let’s hope that the show will be more prominent in Saudi Arabia next week!

3. Mercedes and Hamilton are further behind than expected.

We were expecting a big battle with Ferrari or even a more visible closeness with Red Bull, but it must be acknowledged that Mercedes was more distant than expected this Saturday at the Sakhir circuit, especially on Lewis Hamilton’s side.

The seven-time world champion deliberately sacrificed his qualifying run to focus on adjustments for the race that were supposed to help him compete at the front. Starting 9th, the Briton never managed to move away from the lower end of the midfield, finishing 7th sandwiched between the two McLaren drivers.

On his side, George Russell was more in the spotlight, notably by making a beautiful overtaking move on Leclerc at turn 4. Initially in second place, the Englishman then only plummeted, being passed in quick succession by Perez, Sainz, and even Leclerc in the latter part of the race, less affected by his brake issues.

The pace of the Mercedes was not particularly impressive this Saturday, and there is no doubt that the team will want to erase this image next weekend in Jeddah.