The fight at the front
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| The start of the race (Copyright:Mercedes AMG) |
With Vettel splitting the Mercedes in qualifying (Lewis Hamilton on pole, Nico Rosberg in 3rd) it looked like Ferrari may well give Mercedes a good run for there money and it looked even more likely at the start, with Raikkonen going around the outside of Rosberg in turn 1 to take 3rd. The challenge was expected to come from Vettel, but it was the other Ferrari that would take the fight to the Silver Arrows.
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| Hamilton leads the two Ferrari's (Copyright:Mercedes AMG) |
Rosberg very quickly got past the two Ferrari's, with some brilliant out breaking moves into turn 1. Rosberg was showing much better skill in wheel to wheel combat and was very impressive in how ruthless he went about his racing. He had watched the 2014 race to learn from his team mate, and learn he did. However, during the pitstops he was repeatably undercut by Vettel, therefore having to repass the Ferrari again. Indeed after the first stops, Vettel was ahead of Rosberg as Hamilton came out of the pits. Rosberg took the moment to dive down the inside of the Red Bull, getting very close to his team mate but no contact was made.
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| Rosberg and Vettel do battle as Hamilton exits the pits (Copyright:Mercedes AMG) |
Whilst all this was going on, Raikkonen had stayed out during the first round of pitstops before pitting for the medium tyre, whilst his rivals had stayed on the softs...this is where things got interesting...
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| Raikkonen locks up during the opening sting |
Now you'd normally expect Raikkonen to drop back from Hamilton, Rosberg and Vettel wouldn't you? He was on the medium tyre after all. However, that didn't happen. Raikkonen was closing in on Vettel and Rosberg and was also matching the pace of the leader Hamilton! This caused a stir on the Mercedes pit wall, and it begged the question of what could Raikkonen do in the final stint? It was clear he would run the softs as the others ran the medium...could he split the Mercedes or, even worse for the Mercs, win the race?
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| Rosberg races after Hamilton, with Vettel following him (Copyright: Mercedes AMG) |
The leaders came in for their final stops...Vettel on lap 32, Hamilton on lap 33 and Rosberg on lap 34. Raikkonen however took the lead and stayed out until lap 40, although by then his medium tyres were destroyed, and he lost the lead to Hamilton on lap 39 and was even unlapped by Fernando Alonso's McLaren. He came in for his final stop and on went the soft tyres. From then on, he hunted down his team mate and the Mercedes. But Vettels race wasn't to end on the podium...
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| Bottas holds of Vettel for 4th place (Copyright:Williams Martini Racing) |
Vettel ran wide at turn 15 on lap 35, instantly being passed by Rosberg and having to pit for a new front wing. This allowed Valtteri Bottas to take fourth place in the Williams, and no matter what Vettel did, he could not pass Bottas. Proof that Williams had taken a step forward over the weekend. It was a great drive by the Finnish driver and his best result of the year so far.
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| Hamilton prepares to pass Raikkonen on lap 39 |
Back up front the bottle was getting interesting. After making his final stop Raikkonen was making huge inroads on Rosberg, taking nearly 2 seconds out of the Mercedes at one stage. By lap 55/57, he had closed right in and going into turn 1, Rosberg ran wide, suffering a brake-by-wire failure. Raikkonen didn't need a second invitation, and took Rosberg into turn 3 for 2nd place. He chased after Hamilton, who suffered a brake by wire failure of his own on the final lap, which gave him a bit of a scare but he cruised gently to his second win in Bahrain and third of 2015. However, the big talking point was the return to form of Raikkonen. It had been a welcome return to form for the Iceman, his first podium since Korea 2013. Hopefully he can soon end his win drought, which goes back even further, to Australia 2013...
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| Hamilton takes the victroy |
The battle behind the top five
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| Ricciardo leads Grosjean, Hulkenburg and Ericsson (Copyright:Red Bull) |
Red Bull didn't have a great race. Daniel Ricciardo finished a solid 6th for the team but at on the run to the flag, his Renault engine expired in spectacular fashion. This was his third engine of the year already gone up in smoke, and he is now on his fourth for Barcelona in two weeks time. The rule change that should boost the limit back up to five (which is expected to be confirmed soon) will ease things a little for the team, but penalties will be coming very soon.
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| Kvyat holds of Massa, with the two Manors fighting in the background (Copyright:Red Bull) |
On the other side of the Red Bull garage, it had been a miserable weekend for Danil Kvyat. He qualified in 17th place, after a miserable weekend which saw him spin off in FP3. However he drove a fine race to 9th place, but the car was clearly not at its best. This time last year, Red Bull were up there with Williams for best of the rest for the Mercedes. Not only are they now behind Williams, but they are behind Ferrari, as well as the Mercedes, and are currently only in the midfield. Improvements, mainly to the engine, will need to be made to drive them up the grid.
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| Maldonado leads team mate Grosjean (Copyright:Lotus F1 Tean) |
It was a day off mixed fortunes for Lotus. Romain Grosjean had a fine race to 7th place but Pastor Maldonado had a horrible race, finishing in 15th after qualifying 16th. He was set for a good 7th place ahead of his team mate after a great drive but stalled the car coming into the pits, putting him way down the field. Maybe #13 wasn't a good choice for your F1 career Pastor...
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| Perez leads Massa and Kvyat, as the two Mercedes come up to lap them all |
Force India had a good day. Nico Hulkenburg had qualified 8th, although he would end up finishing in 13th, but Sergio Perez, who qualified 11th, managed his tyres to perfection and scored a solid 8th place for the team. It was a good race for the team who are will be struggling until they can bring some big updates to the VJM08, but a better showing in Bahrain will certainly boost the teams morale.
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| Massa blasts past Verstappen, with sparks flying (Copyright: Williams Martini Racing) |
You may be wondering why I haven't yet mentioned Felipe Massa. Well thats because as the formation lap got underway, Massa...didn't. They had been unable to start the car on the grid but they started it in time for him to start from the pitlane. He initially recovered to 8th, which he and the team would have been very happy with, but earlier contact with Maldonado damaged his floor, and he only finished in 10th,behind the Red Bull of Kvyat.
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| Verstappen and Maldonado do battle (Copyright:Red Bull) |
Toro Rosso had an awful race, with both cars retiring. This though wasn't as puzzling as their lack of pace, which puzzled even the team, especially as Sainz had managed to qualify a great 9th place. The team pointed the finger of blame at Renault. Now Toro Rosso are starting to get a little annoyed....
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| Alonso on his way to 11th place (Copyright: McLaren Honda) |
McLarens weekend went no worse than expected...unless you're Jenson Button. The Brit stopped out on track in both of friday's free practice sessions and also at the start of Q1. Of course, he was permitted to start at the back of the grid but didn't make the start, an ERS problem being found when they fired the car up. Fernando Alonso though finished an encouraging 11th, after getting the car into Q2 for the first time on Saturday. Alonso said that Bahrain would be the last race the team didn't score points...with plenty of upgrades coming, Barcelona awaits.
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| Nasr leads a train of cars in the early stages (Copyright:Sauber F1 Team) |
Sauber should have scored points with at least one of its drivers, but didn't. Nasr and Ericsson finished 12th and 14th, Ericssons race was ruined by a terrible first pitstop. The team will no doubt have put this behind them and will be determined to come back stronger in Barcelona.
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| Stevens and Mehri do battle (Copyright:Manor Marussia F1) |
Finally, Manor Marussia again got both its cars to the end of the race, Will Stevens finishing 16th and Roberto Mehri 17th. Another solid weekend for the team, as they continue to run the 2014 MR03. The 2015 car should appear by the time F1 reaches Spa, hopefully that will lift them into the midfield.
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| The podium |
It may have been another Mercedes victory, but Ferrari are well and truly back, and not just with Vettel. Kimi Raikkonen is now back to his best, and surely a victory or two will come his way later on in the season. With Nico Rosberg now showing the aggression he needs, Hamilton will have good reason to worry. Stay tuned folks. Forget what some people are saying. This championship is far from over. Until next time folks. Ciao.
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| Will Stevens on his way to 16th place (Copyright:Manor Marussia F1) |
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