A race planted in the Persian Gulf, toiled in controversy and bathed in heat. It can only be the
Bahrain Grand Prix.
Bahrain was first held in 2004 and became the first ever Grand Prix to be held in the Middle East; now in it’s tenth year holding the Grand Prix, the organisers have decided to join
Singapore and turn the Bahrain Grand Prix into a night race.
Bahrain has been shrouded in controversy through out the years. In 2011, during the
Arab Spring, the race was originally planned to be held before Australia, but violent riots meant that the race was too dangerous to hold, and risked the security of those involved. Both 2012 and 2013 also saw protests continuing the the Gulf state; in 2012 members of Force India left Bahrain with concern of their safety after they travelled from the track to the hotel and was caught in an incident between protesters and police.
However, Bahrain was also used for pre season testing. Last year, two of the three pre-season tests happen at the Sakhir circuit. It was also announced that the
first turn of the circuit would be named after Michael Schumacher, the seven time World Champion, who is firmly in our thoughts as we head through the season.
The layout of the track has been described as ‘very stop/start’ by various mechanics and drivers because of the long straights ending with hard breaking. One of its most infamous corners is
turn 9, where you will be certain to find even the most experienced of drivers locking up into the difficult left hander; the corner rises up before you turn, creating a blind apex, meaning the driver has to judge his braking zone. This can make a large difference in lap times.
The long straights are favourable for cars with minimal down force and good straight line speeds. Speed trap data from Malaysia and Australia (both situated at the end of straights) shows that teams with Mercedes power are consistently giving fast speed trap times through out sessions during race weekends, suggesting that these teams will benefit from the long multiple straights in Bahrain.
Force India have had success at this track in the past few years. 2012 and 2013 saw ex-formula one driver
Paul Di Resta, take some of his best F1 finishes at the Sakhir circuit. 2013 nearly saw him clench his first F1 podium as he ran in the top 3 for the majority of the race, however he was overtaken by Romain Grosjean at the end of the race seeing Di Resta finish 4th, his best finish in 2013.
Last year Bahrain provided us with one of the best F1 races (in my opinion) of all time. It was
Button's 250th GP, and from the very start we were given a glimpse of the
duel to come, as Lewis Hamilton stole the lead from Nico Rosberg into the first corner. Heading up the hill, Rosberg challenged Lewis around the outside of turn 4, but for Lewis to hold his ground.
The gap remained the same until lap 18, where Rosberg had closed enough for another attempt, diving down the inside but going to deep, Lewis giving him the cutback, almost causing contact. Rosberg was not happy about this...
But the next lap Rosberg was back! This time, both Mercedes locked up and Rosberg made the move stick! But now Lewis had the run on him into turn 4, as he chased Rosberg up the hill. As they approached turn 4, Hamilton did the opposite to what Rosberg had attemped on lap one, and decided to use the cutback, and on the run into turn 5, he squeezed his way through, regaining the lead.
While all this happened meanwhile, the midfield pack were battling and
Perez was pushing himself up into the podium position.
In a two stop race, Hamilton had pitted for Softs while Rosberg had pitted for Mediums. This allowed Lewis to pull out a small gap during the race for when they pitted next time and Rosberg would have the faster tyre.
However, soon after they pitted, Maldonado clumsily drove into Guttierez,
flipping the car dramatically [13] and bringing out the safety car. This destroyed the advantage that Lewis had built up and brought Rosberg, on the faster tyres, to Hamilton's rear wing. Paddy Lowe warned both drivers to just "bring the cars home".
As the safety car came in, Rosberg wasted no time, making his presence known into turn 1, before attacking up the hill into turn 4 around the outside, where Lewis once again held his ground. The two Force India's and Red Bull's both battling in the background meanwhile.
Two laps later, now with just 4 laps remaining, Rosberg attacked at turn 1 again, this time Lewis held the outside line. On the run to turn 4 AGAIN, Hamilton heavily defended and Rosberg AGAIN went around the outside, but AGAIN Hamilton held him off.
A lap later at turn 1, you guessed it, Rosberg came at Lewis again, but outbraked himself and Lewis had enough momentum to easily defend turn 4 this time.
For the remaining laps, Hamilton managed to hold the gap at one second, likely after Rosberg's tires were dead. Perez joined them on the podium.
Check out all the moves here! Facts from Formula1.com:This year sees Bahrain celebrate its eleventh appearance on the F1 calendar with its very first night race, but which teams and drivers have performed best amid the desert sands of Sakhir? Ahead of the 2014 Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix, we highlight all the important statistics, facts and figures about this challenging race…
Circuit: Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir
Circuit length: 5.412 km
Number of corners: 15 (6 left, 9 right)
DRS zones: 2
Race laps: 57
Race distance: 308.238 km
2014 tyre compounds: Medium, Soft
Circuit lap record: 1m 31.447s - Pedro de la Rosa (2005), McLaren-Mercedes
First world championship Grand Prix: 2004, Sakhir (won by Michael Schumacher, Ferrari)
Number of races: 10 (all in Sakhir)
Number of races with at least one safety car appearance: One
Longest race: 2010 (1h 39m 20.396s)
Shortest race: 2004 (1h 28m 34.875s)
Most appearances (current field):10 - Fernando Alonso, Jenson Button, Felipe Massa;
9 - Kimi Raikkonen;
8 - Nico Rosberg;
7 - Lewis Hamilton;
6 - Sebastian Vettel
Most wins (driver):
3 - Fernando Alonso;
2 - Felipe Massa, Sebastian Vettel;
1 - Michael Schumacher, Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton
Most wins (team):
4 - Ferrari;
2 - Renault, Red Bull;
1 - Brawn, Mercedes
Most wins (engine manufacturer):
4 - Ferrari, Renault;
2 - Mercedes
Most pole positions (driver):2 - Michael Schumacher, Sebastian Vettel, Nico Rosberg;
1 - Fernando Alonso, Felipe Massa, Robert Kubica, Jarno Trulli,
Most pole positions (team):
3 - Ferrari;
2 - Red Bull Mercedes;
1 - Renault, BMW Sauber, Toyota
Most pole positions (engine manufacturer):
3 - Ferrari, Renault;
2 - Mercedes
1 - BMW, Toyota
Number of wins from pole: 4 wins from 10 races (40 percent)
Lowest winning grid position: 4th (Fernando Alonso, 2006; Jenson Button 2009)
Most podium places (current field):
6 - Kimi Raikkonen; 3 - Felipe Massa, Fernando Alonso, Sebastian Vettel;
3 - Lewis Hamilton
2 - Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton, Romain Grosjean
1 - Rosberg, Perez
Special Achievement:> Turbo history: Similarly, if a Honda-powered car wins the race it’ll be the first Honda turbo win since the 1988 Australian Grand Prix.
Did You Know?The Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir has been the venue for the Bahrain Grand Prix since the event's inception in 2004. On all but two occasions the race has been held in April, the exceptions being the 2006 and 2010 events which were both season openers. Last year's race was the first to be held under floodlights.
The race has been run on the current 5.4-kilometre Grand Prix circuit layout on all but one occasion. In 2010 the 6.2-kilometre 'endurance' circuit layout was used, but it proved unpopular with teams and drivers.
Michael Schumacher dominated the inaugural race in 2004, taking pole position, victory and fastest lap. It was the first of a record four wins at the circuit for Ferrari, Felipe Massa (2007 and 2008) and Fernando Alonso (2010) claiming the Scuderia's other victories. Renault (2), Red Bull (2), Brawn and Mercedes (both 1) have also triumphed at the desert venue, but McLaren have never won in Sakhir. Sochi is the only other track on the current calendar at which the Woking team have not been victorious.
Fernando Alonso is statistically the most successful driver in Bahrain Grand Prix history, having claimed a record three wins. Of the current grid, Felipe Massa (2), Sebastian Vettel (2), Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton (both 1) have also recorded wins in Sakhir, but Kimi Raikkonen has never stood on the top step, despite achieving a record six podium finishes at the venue. Will this finally be the Finn's year?
Several of the current grid have recorded ‘firsts' in Bahrain - Nico Rosberg scored his first fastest lap at the circuit (in his first ever F1 race) in 2006, Felipe Massa and Lewis Hamilton achieved their first front-row starts at Sakhir in 2006 and 2007 respectively, and Romain Grosjean collected his maiden F1 podium on Bahraini soil in 2012.
Pedro de la Rosa holds the lap record in Bahrain - a 1m 31.447s effort recorded in 2005 while the Spaniard was deputising for the injured Juan Pablo Montoya.
In 10 previous races in Bahrain, no one has won by more than 20 seconds. The biggest winning margin came in 2010 when Alonso came home 16.099 seconds ahead of Ferrari team mate Massa. The smallest winning margin came in last year's race when Hamilton beat Rosberg across the line by just 1.085 seconds.
Pole position isn't everything in Bahrain, the race having been won from P1 on the grid just four times out of ten. However, no one has won the race from lower than fourth on the grid.
The biggest margin between pole position and second on the grid in Bahrain Grand Prix history occurred in 2005 when Alonso beat Michael Schumacher to pole by 0.455 seconds.
Of all the rookies on the 2015 grid, only Felipe Nasr has raced at Bahrain before (in GP2 in 2012, 2013 and 2014). The Brazilian was second at Sakhir in 2013.
McLaren's Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso and Williams' Felipe Massa are the only drivers to have started every Bahrain Grand Prix since its inception in 2004. Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen has started all but one, with just the 2010 race missing from his resume.
Only two drivers have led more than 100 laps in Sakhir - Sebastian Vettel (146) and Felipe Massa (102). Alonso and Hamilton are next up on 96 and 58 laps led respectively.
Source: mikejohnno from /r/formula1