Ferrari has come back impressively, but for Red Bull and world champion Max Verstappen the start of the World Cup ended in disaster. Charles Leclerc, who started from pole position, as the winner and Carlos Sainz as second, gave the Scuderia a double victory on Sunday in Bahrain. Lewis Hamilton was unexpectedly third for Mercedes. The Brit benefited from the late failures of Verstappen and his teammate Sergio Perez due to technical defects.
“That’s exactly how we should start this season. On one and two, baby! Mamma Mia!” Leclerc radioed into the pits after the checkered flag. The 24-year-old Monegasse celebrated his third Grand Prix success under floodlights. For Ferrari it was the first Formula 1 victory since Sebastian Vettel’s 2019 triumph in Singapore 910 days earlier. Leclerc initially withstood the attacks of his pursuer Verstappen and also survived a safety car phase shortly before the end without any problems.
Exciting duel between Leclerc and Verstappen
98 days after the dramatic World Cup final with a lot of discussion material, Verstappen wanted to know right at the beginning in the twilight of the desert track from Sakhir. At the start of a new era after major rule changes, Leclerc confidently defended the lead. Hamilton pushed past Perez, Kevin Magnussen also had a good distance. The Dane, who was surprisingly strong in the Haas, drove into the first corners in fifth place – and was to take this position sensationally at the end.
Perez left Hamilton behind again after ten laps, and the seven-time world champion had nothing to counter the attack by the Red Bull driver. The Mercedes driver also had grip problems after the first pit stop. After the leaders had also swapped tires, from the 17th lap the hoped-for improvements in more overtaking maneuvers were fully met.
The thrilling exchange of blows between Leclerc and the approaching Verstappen lasted three laps. Thanks to DRS, the Dutchman passed his rival at top speed, who countered three corners later. The scenario repeated itself in the next round. Verstappen then passed again after the home stretch, but braked and had to let Leclerc pass again. The Monegasque was then able to increase his lead again.
Tires as a big topic
Tire wear remained a major issue, causing problems for the teams. The second pit stops did not get Verstappen past Leclerc either, the Dutchman complained via radio for what he considered to be the wrong strategy. “You can now push as you like, Max,” it said from the Red Bull box. This was only partially successful. Leclerc remained safe, only the safety car phase, because Pierre Gasly’s Alpha Tauri was on fire, brought the competitors together again. However, Leclerc again defended his position.
Verstappen already complained about problems with the steering. Worse was to come. His Red Bull rolled out three laps before the end. Perez then had to complain about the same mishap, the Mexican also didn’t make it to the finish on the last lap. According to Red Bull’s motorsport consultant Helmut Marko, the problems were related to the fuel supply, which should have affected both cars equally. Behind Hamilton, his Mercedes colleague George Russell also said thank you and took fourth place.
Source: Nachrichten
