Verstappen cruises to victory, Ferrari makes a statement.
On the sports front, the new Formula One season—which has 24 grand prix and six sprint races—is off to a very familiar start. This is the longest season in the history of the sport. After winning eight times in a row on Saturday, Max Verstappen now appears capable of surpassing his personal record of ten victories in a row. Upon the conclusion of the Bahrain Grand Prix weekend, the Dutchman had achieved a Grand Chelem, which entailed leading the whole race, securing pole position, and recording the fastest lap.
Total dominance, once more. "I think today Max is not in a different league, but he's in a different galaxy", stated Toto Wolff of Mercedes.
Behind the Red Bull drivers, however, a lot transpired as they achieved their first 1-2 result since the Italian Grand Prix in September. Early in the race, Ferrari's Carlos Sainz made a bold move on teammate Charles Leclerc, and both drivers performed well in spite of a brake problem.
In the meanwhile, Nico Hulkenberg and Lance Stroll made contact early in the race, Lewis Hamilton got into a fight, Valtteri Bottas had a drawn-out pit stop, and Williams is having problems with its new steering wheel. Positively, though, every one of the twenty vehicles completed the race.
Unsurprisingly, the Bahrain Grand Prix turned into a relaxed Saturday walk for the three-time world champion as he gradually extended his lead.
The lead over Sergio Pérez, who was in second position, was 15 seconds with 15 laps remaining. It had risen to a striking twenty seconds with five left. Verstappen finished in P3, 22.457 seconds ahead of his teammate and 25 seconds ahead of Sainz. With the activity on the track, Red Bull's supporters could not ask for more as the team begins its 20th season on the grid.
Bahrain is one of Red Bull’s strongest circuits, the Dutchman said. Jeddah is a reasonably different track, but it could be another repeat. Pérez (who won there last year) said, “I believe that the car will be strong there with the high-speed content, so I think there should be another strong weekend for us.”
Carlos Sainz has expressed nothing but gratitude for Ferrari's decision to award Lewis Hamilton his spot for 2025. But as soon as the Bahraini season got underway, you could just see that the Spaniard would have some resentment. He drives with pride. Sainz drove quickly on Saturday during practice, qualifying, and testing with a laser-like intensity.
On the eleventh lap, he completed the pass at Turn 3 and passed teammate Charles Leclerc for P4. He made a bold charge into the Turn 1 hairpin. On Lap 18, Sainz then overtook George Russell of Mercedes. That's when Sainz's engineer said, "Let's go hunting," with only the Red Bulls in front of him.
Even though Pérez controlled his soft tires brilliantly for the final twenty circuits and ended 2.6 seconds ahead of the Ferrari, Sainz was still unable to catch up to him, but he was still happy to join the podium. It seems like we'll be seeing a lot of that tenacity this season as he looks to protect his dignity and find a new seat.
Preseason testing gave every sign that the RBs had improved over the winter, securing the Stake and Haas vehicles' position at the rear of the field. That read doesn't have to be wrong based on one outcome from the first race of the season. Despite the significant team upheaval this winter, Haas and Stake will still feel good about finishing ahead of Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda.
Williams and Mercedes both encountered cooling problems with their engines. It's something to watch in the upcoming days and weeks. Mercedes serves Aston Martin, McLaren, and Williams as engine clients.
Oscar Piastri (P8) and Lando Norris (P6) were unable to keep up with Mercedes or Ferrari, confirming McLaren's prediction that Bahrain would not be the place where it would showcase its full capabilities. Even yet, the team was pleased with the outcome since it bodes well for the next season for them to perform well on a track where they usually struggle. The package that McLaren is bringing to Jeddah next week excites Norris, who remarks, "The upgrade (last season) has changed our lives."
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