03/04/2016
NEWS STORY
Over the Melbourne weekend McLaren, to little noticeable fanfare, signed a new sponsor... Sensodyne.
In many ways this has to be one of the most significant and cleverest signings in recent times, for if ever one needed to take away the bad taste that F1 is currently leaving...
As the sport's powers-that-be stumble from one fiasco to another, witness the absolute disaster that is qualifying and the even more ludicrous alternative that has been put forward today, let us hope for a decent race today that might raise our spirits.
On the face of it the Mercedes duo still have that 0.5s advantage over Ferrari, however, a Melbourne-style start could see one of the red cars riding shotgun for the other. On the other hand there remains a serious question mark over tyre strategy, the silvers cars opting for softs where the red favour medium.
So, assuming we can allow Mercedes and Ferrari to dominate - in much the same way Bernie tells us they rule the sport politically these days - it is the battle behind that should provide the fireworks.
Another strangely disappointing performance from Daniil Kvyat means that Daniel Ricciardo has to face the might of Williams, Toro Rosso and Haas - yes Haas - alone.
A clever move by Nico Hulkenberg means the German is in the mix, whilst Sergio Perez pays the price for his team's failure to get to grips with the new format. Then again, if we're going to start apportioning blame...
It's race we hear this, but the Bahrain International Circuit is good for overtaking, indeed, most drivers agree that pole isn't as important as it is at other tracks, which possibly explains why so many didn't bother going for it yesterday.
Tyre should play a significant role today, with those drivers playing the long game, looking at the race as opposed to Saturday afternoon, looking to make up ground.
A three-stop strategy is theoretically quickest; start on supersoft, change to soft on lap 14, soft again on lap 29 and soft again on lap 43.
If a driver has enough new supersofts available (around a second per lap faster than the soft) another effective strategy would be to start on supersoft, then change to supersoft again on laps 12 and 27, then a final stint on soft from lap 42.
The fastest two-stopper would be start on supersoft, medium on lap 12, then soft from lap 37. However, this carries a significant pace disadvantage.
The blood red skies of dusk will give way to the floodlights, and a number of drivers will be looking to shine, none more so than Stoffel Vandoorne, a three-time winner here in GP2. Out-qualifying his illustrious teammate, Jenson Button, yesterday, the Belgian got his weekend off to the best possible start... despite the Ronster's attempt to put Fernando back in the car.
Despite a frustrating qualifying, Jolyon Palmer will be looking to make up ground whilst we look forward to good performances from Pascal Wehrlein and Rio Haryanto.
Fifteen minutes before the pit lane is due to open the stewards reveal that after brake balance map parameters were changed during Parc Ferme, Magnussen will start from the pitlane. However, since the Dane was already going to start from the pitlane after the weigh station mix-up on Friday...
The pitlane opens, and one by one the drivers head out.
On his grid walk Martin Brundle comes across a clearly embarrassed and forlorn Fernando Alonso... the term 'place I would rather be' springs to mind. "It is very, very strange," admits the Spaniard. "Hopefully it is useful in China when I am back in the car."
Fifteen minutes before the start, as the sun begins setting and the floodlights slowly come to life, the air temperature is 23 degrees C, whilst the track temperature is 30 degrees. There's a fairly strong cross-wing on the main pit straight.
All are starting on the super(soft), bar Sainz, Kvyat, Wehrlein, Ericsson, Haryanto, Nasr and Magnussen who all start on the soft. Starting eleventh, Sainz is the highest starting driver on softs, his teammate, just a place ahead, is on the supers.
The field heads off on the warm-up lap, Rosberg very slow getting away and losing a couple of positions.
"I might have an engine failure," warns Vettel, at which point his power unit detonates. He pulls off track between turns 13 and 14, his race over... and in many ways, ours.
As the grid forms, Palmers heads into the pitlane, meaning that both Renaults in the pitlane.
They're away, and Rosberg makes a great start, as do the Williams duo, whilst Raikkonen, unlike Melbourne, has a poor getaway.
Rosberg leads into T1 but there's chaos behind as Hamilton is hit by Bottas who attempts to go down the inside of the Mercedes, and loses a heap of positions along with a significant amount of carbonfibre.
"Something feels wrong at my rear," says Hamilton as he drops to eighth and looks likely to fall further. That said, the Briton begins his fight back, making short work of Hulkenberg despite a worrying amount of sparks from under the car suggesting a tyre or suspension issue.
No such problems for Bottas, who appeared to be the culprit of that clash. "Everything OK from my side," declares the Finn.
Replay shows Ricciardo suffered some front wing damage as he clouted the rear of Bottas' Williams in that first lap melee.
Out front Rosberg leads Massa, Bottas, Ricciardo, Raikkonen, Grosjean, Gutierrez, Hulkenberg, Hamilton and Button.
Hulkenberg pits at the end of lap 1 as teammate Perez collides with Sainz in an accident eerily similar to that a lap earlier, the Mexican losing a piece of his front wing.
Despite his damaged front wing, Perez battles with Kvyat for twelfth, Wehrlein keeping a close watch. The Mexican subsequently pits for a new front wing. Elsewhere, Ericsson and Nasr in a furious scrap for 15th, as Magnussen and Haryanto look on.
Palmer is declared a non-starter, the Briton never having left the pits after peeling off at the end of the warm-up lap.
Sainz pits, the Spaniard having picked up a puncture in that clash with Perez.
After 3 laps, Rosberg leads Massa by 4.2s with Bottas third, ahead of Ricciardo, Raikkonen, Hamilton, Grosjean, Gutierrez, Verstappen and Button.
As Rosberg posts a new fastest lap (37.483), Hamilton is setting a strong pace as he closes on Raikkonen.
With his damaged front wing Ricciardo is struggling. He runs wide in T1 and Raikkonen doesn't await an invitation passing the Red Bull on the run to T4. Hamilton also closes in on the Australian.
Check out our Sunday gallery, here.
At the end of lap 6 Ricciardo pits as Raikkonen makes a bold move on Bottas to take third. That was the Kimi of old.
The stewards are investigating the Bottas/Hamilton clash.
Button grinds to halt at T10, the Briton's race at an end.
Massa pits at the end of lap 7 as Hamilton makes a great move on Bottas in T1 to take fourth. Massa rejoins in 14th.
Haryanto runs wide in T10 as Bottas and Gutierrez pit. The Finn rejoins in 15th as he is advised that he is to serve a drive-through for that first lap clash with Hamilton.
Vandoorne pits at the end of lap 9 as Massa passes Nasr to take 8th.
Bottas serves his penalty, rejoining in 17th.
A long stop for Gutierrez. Indeed, the car is put on a trolley and pushed back into the garage.
Verstappen and Nasr both pit at the end of lap 10, the Dutch youngster lucky not to T-bone Hulkenberg as he leaves the pits.
A great move sees Vandoorne who dives down the inside of Perez to take 14th.
Grosjean pits at the end of lap 11, as does Wehrlein.
Perez catches up with Vandoorne and the two begin battling. The Mexican gets ahead but the McLaren driver is having none of it and retakes the position.
Raikkonen pits at the end of lap 12, as do Magnussen and Haryanto.
Raikkonen on sparkling form, he follows through as Ricciardo passes Bottas, subsequently passing the Red Bull also. He closes on the second Red Bull of Kvyat and makes short work of him also. Brilliant stuff.
Rosberg pits at the end of lap 13, rejoining still in the lead. A lap later it is teammate Hamilton who stops.
As the two Red Bulls battle for third, Hamilton nails Masa to take fifth. Ricciardo wins the in-house duel.
10.6s down on Rosberg, Raikkonen posts a new fastest lap (36.761) as Hamilton closes on Ricciardo.
Massa battles Kvyat for 5th, the Russian the only driver still to stop. The Red Bull driver runs wide in T1, allowing Massa through and also Grosjean. He subsequently pits, as does Hulkenberg.
Massa and Grosjean now battling for 5th, as the other Williams driver is under pressure from Nasr, with Ericsson also closing in.
A great move sees Grosjean pass Massa, as the Haas fairy-tale continues.
After 18 laps, it's: Rosberg, Raikkonen, Hamilton, Ricciardo, Grosjean, Massa, Verstappen, Vandoorne, Bottas and Ericsson.
Verstappen closes on Massa who looks vulnerable on the medium rubber. Sure enough, the Toro Rosso nails the Williams in T1.
Also on the medium rubber, Hamilton is matching leaders Rosberg and Raikkonen for pace, but remains 20.555s behind his teammate.
As Sainz pits from last at the end of lap 20, Ericsson and Nasr continue their epic scrap.
Replay shows Sainz car dropped from the rear jack, a bad day getting a whole lot worse for the Spaniard.
The highest placed driver on supers, Grosjean catches Ricciardo. Indeed, the only other driver on supers at present is Magnussen in 14th.
Great move sees Grosjean take Ricciardo to take fourth. On the pit-wall Guenther Steiner grins in appreciation.
At the end of lap 24 Ricciardo pits, rejoining in 11th, splitting the Saubers.
"No way I can pass the Manor," complains Magnussen, "it's like a rocket on the straight."
Vandoorne pits at the end of lap 25, rejoining in 15th.
Ricciardo passes Bottas to take 8th, the Finn having a miserable afternoon.
At the end of lap 26 Verstappen pits, the youngster switch to mediums.
Perez passes Wehrlein to take 12th.
Grosjean pits at the end of lap 27, rejoining in 8th. Ricciardo passes his Red Bull teammate for 5th.
Hamilton pits at the end of lap 28, switching from medium to supers. Meanwhile, Ricciardo posts a new fastest lap (36.510).
In turn, Grosjean and Verstappen pass a startled Bottas as teammate Massa is under pressure from Kvyat.
Raikkonen pits at the end of lap 29, the Finn switching to supers. Massa also pits, as do Ericsson and Wehrlein.
Rosberg pits at the end of lap 30, the German still now on the supersoft rubber.
As replay shows a minor problem with the right-rear during Rosberg's stop, we see that Sainz has called it a day.
After all that, Rosberg leads Raikkonen by 9.029s with Hamilton just 3.373s behind the Finn. Ricciardo is fourth, 24s down on Hamilton, ahead of Kvyat, Grosjean, Verstappen, Bottas, Vandoorne and Massa.
Grosjean closes on Kvyat into T1 but the Russian can offer no resistance, the Haas is through to take 5th.
Magnussen nails Perez on the pit straight, as Verstappen passes the hapless Kvyat to take 6th. The Russian's weekend goes from bad to worse.
As Vandoorne finds himself in the middle of a Williams in-house battle, Kvyat pits. As does Bottas.
Check out our Sunday gallery, here.
A bad day gets worse for Perez also as in successive corners Hulkenberg and then Ericsson leave the Mexican for dead.
Hulkenberg pits at the end of lap 36, the German switching to supers.
Raikkonen pits at the end of lap 37, the Finn switches to the soft rubber. He rejoins in third, 18.822s down on Hamilton.
Rosberg pits at the end of lap 39, as does Magnussen. The German (softs) rejoins 4.39s ahead of Raikkonen.
After 40 laps, Hamilton (supers) leads Rosberg by 6.036s, Raikkonen is a further 4.115s down the road 25.084s ahead of Ricciardo.
Grosjean pits at the end of lap 40, and despite an issue with the left-rear he rejoins in eighth ahead of Vandoorne.
As Hamilton pits at the end of lap 41, Raikkonen is told that Rosberg is on softs. "It's still on Kimi," he is told.
As Vandoorne and Wehrlein pit, Rosberg posts a new fastest lap (35.577).
Ricciardo pits at the end of lap 42, the Red Bull driver switching to mediums. He rejoins in fifth.
Behind the leaders, Verstappen is now fourth, ahead of Ricciardo, Massa, Kvyat, Grosjean, Bottas and Ericsson.
Told the gap to Raikkonen, Rosberg snaps: "Don't tell me every lap. Tell me every four laps or something.
In his determination to pass Nasr, Magnussen gets worryingly close to Raikkonen.
At the end of lap 44, Kvyat makes his third stop of the afternoon, rejoining in ninth. Haryanto also pits.
Another great move sees Grosjean pass Massa to take sixth, Haas looking good for another handful of points. "Awesome, absolutely awesome," the Frenchman is told.
Verstappen pits at the end of lap 47, rejoining in seventh.
With ten laps remaining, Raikkonen is 6.719s adrift of Rosberg, but 13.117s clear of Hamilton.
Magnussen makes a move on Ericsson but the Swede slams the door, the pair lucky not to collide.
Kvyat closes on Bottas, as the Magnussen/Ericsson battle rages.
Hamilton passes the duelling Magnussen and Ericsson, the Dane tries to take advantage and follow through but the Swede is wide awake.
Kvyat nails Bottas in T1 to take eighth. However, the Finn fights back, they battle but the Williams driver runs wide and loses out.
Patience pays off, eventually Magnussen gets through and heads into the distance.
Verstappen passes Massa to take sixth as Wehrlein nails Hulkenberg for thirteenth.
After 52 laps (of 57), it's: Rosberg, Raikkonen (+6.2), Hamilton (+15.9), Ricciardo (+43.4), Grosjean, Verstappen, Massa, Kvyat, Bottas and Vandoorne.
As we wonder if Vandoorne is going to score a point on his debut, Wehrlein is all over Ericsson for twelfth.
As the laps count down, Kvyat closes in on Massa. The Russian's cause is helped when the Williams needs to slow as it is lapped by Rosberg. A virtuoso move sees the Red Bull driver nail the Brazilian, great stuff from the Russian.
Rosberg takes the flag, his fifth successive win. Raikkonen takes second, upholding honours for Ferrari, ahead of Hamilton, Ricciardo, Grosjean, Verstappen, Kvyat, Massa, Bottas and Vandoorne.
Magnussen is eleventh, ahead of Ericsson, Wehrlein, Nasr, Hulkenberg, Perez and Haryanto.
Whilst some point to the red flag in Melbourne owing a lot to Ferrari's demise, there is no such doubt this time round, Rosberg taking an impressive lights-to-flag win. Indeed, today's victory is his fifth successive win and means that since claiming that third title teammate Hamilton has yet to beat him.
As in Melbourne, the end result was a lot better for Hamilton than it initially looked, Lady Luck once again appearing to smile down on the Briton.
A strong performance from Raikkonen, who showed signs of the Kimi of old, the Finn giving his team something after the nightmare of that DNS for teammate Vettel.
When it comes to driver of the day, maybe everyone should get a piece for there were some great performance throughout the field.
Ricciardo proved that Melbourne was no fluke whilst Kvyat, despite a couple of mistakes, surely made up for the disappointment of yesterday.
Another great performance from Grosjean and Haas, who, like Ricciardo, proved that Melbourne was no fluke, whilst Verstappen's drive to sixth more than made up for that unnecessary petulance in Australia.
A crazy day for Williams, who really need to take a step forward if they are to keep Red Bull and others at bay in the title fight.
Then there's McLaren. No doubt some at Woking will be wondering if Alonso might have achieved even more than Vandoorne - the youngster joining that exclusive club of drivers who have scored points on their F1 debut - but would he or would he have suffered a similar fate to Button.
Another star today was Wehrlein, the German so close to taking a point for Manor, and surely a driver destined for big things.
Whilst it all went to pot for Force India, we must thank Sauber for a good afternoon's entertainment, Nasr and Ericsson in the thick of it for the duration.
On a day their teammate's starred, disappointment for Vettel, Button, Gutierrez and Sainz, whilst Palmer deserved more.
All in all an entertaining race, and one which helped take some of the bad taste of qualifying away.
Check out our Sunday gallery, here.