Bahrain – Qualifying: Four in a row for Hamilton, Vettel 2nd!

Night falls over the Bahraini desert, and the twenty cars of the Formula One Circus are preparing to compete in the qualifying session on a powerfully lit track.

Q1:

Kimi Räikkönen is the first to take off. A decision that seems surprising, as the track is not yet well cleaned, partly due to sand deposits. The Ferrari driver locks his medium tires twice. Nico Rosberg takes the top of the sheet with a 1:35:657. Lewis Hamilton, still on medium tires, does not improve on his next attempt. The drivers seem to be struggling at the start of this session, like Romain Grosjean and Max Verstappen.

Jenson Button hit with bad luck: the McLaren-Honda is stopped ten minutes before the end of the session. The Englishman had already faced numerous reliability problems this weekend. Ron Dennis does not hide his disappointment in the pits.

Force India decided to switch to soft tires right from the start. Nico Hülkenberg is only a tenth behind Nico Rosberg. Therefore, the Mercedes will need to get back on track with soft tires. Bad news for the Silver Arrows. With the fastest tires, Nico Rosberg must be careful: he is warned that these tires might be used during the race.

The end of Q1 is approaching. Lewis Hamilton goes under 1:33 for the first time this weekend. The big disappointment is for Kvyat, who missed his attempt and won’t pass Q1. The Russian driver, in the pit lane, won’t be able to explain his underperformance. His start to the season is truly very difficult.

Pastor Maldonado, performing well in free practice, still gets knocked out: an engine problem hindered his performance. His misfortunes are the joy of Fernando Alonso, who, for the first time this season, makes it to Q2, with a very solid 9th place. Jenson Button has reason to feel unfortunate…

Eliminated in Q1: Maldonado, Kvyat, Stevens, Merhi, and Button.

Q2:

The green flag is waved, but the cars don’t seem to be in a hurry. As often, a Force India, driven by Sergio Perez, goes out scouting, immediately on soft tires of course. The Mexican is quickly beaten by the two Mercedes. Lewis Hamilton sets a blazing time: 1:32.669. More than a second faster than Nico Rosberg! The psychological war is on. But the German may have managed to preserve his soft tires a bit better for the race…

Sebastian Vettel is on track. He prefers not to push too hard to preserve his set of tires for the start, but ensures a sufficient time for Q3, nine-tenths behind Lewis Hamilton. Kimi Räikkönen narrowly beats his teammate. The Sauber drivers, as well as Fernando Alonso, have decided to make only one attempt. Marcus Ericsson goes too wide on the curb and will fail in Q2.

The battle is very close for the top 10. Nico Hülkenberg, with a mediocre Force India, delivers a perfect lap to secure the 9th fastest time. Sergio Perez misses out on 11th place, edged out by Carlos Sainz. His teammate at Toro Rosso, Max Verstappen, might be disappointed: he will start 15th.

Fernando Alonso is 14th: he did not confirm his 9th fastest time from Q1, but will be greatly satisfied with this best qualification of the season. Both Saubers will start 12th and 13th.

Romain Grosjean, despite struggling during Free Practice, secures a solid 7th position. “We’re back in business,” says his French engineer. However, the big favorite for Q3 is Lewis Hamilton, who lapped nine-tenths faster than everyone else…

Eliminated in Q2: Perez, Nasr, Ericsson, Alonso, Verstappen

Q3:

The moment of truth arrives for the top ten drivers of this session. The first benchmark is set by Sebastian Vettel, with a disappointing time of 1:34.522, likely achieved on worn tires to save a set for the race. Ricciardo posts a nice 1:33.850, faster than Lewis Hamilton in Q1.

Nico Rosberg can’t beat the Australian driver, while Lewis Hamilton, also on worn tires, is ahead by three-tenths. The second attempts will be crucial for the top four.

All the drivers have put on their last set of new tires. Everyone is playing their best cards in the final moments of the session… and it’s Lewis Hamilton who has the best hand! The English driver clinches pole position with a four-tenths lead over… Sebastian Vettel. For once again, Nico Rosberg is outpaced by Sebastian Vettel. The Scuderia has once again repeated its success from Malaysia.

It’s another setback for Nico Rosberg, who finishes more than five-tenths behind his teammate. Race after race, the German seems powerless. However, he will start on the good side of the track and may hope to overtake Vettel at the first corner. Kimi Räikkönen is in fourth place, lurking.

The two Williams are in their place: Bottas is 5th, Massa 6th. Nico Hülkenberg wins a very indecisive battle against Carlos Sainz and Romain Grosjean. The three drivers are within less than four tenths, but the French driver was surely aiming for a bit more than the fifth row.