From the battle we’ve been waiting at the front to an equally intense one within the running pack, and from old drivers at new teams with tough races in store to new drivers who want the signal To do this, we clarify five key themes for the future. 2021 season opener at Bahrain International Circle.
1. Verstappen vs Hamilton
Finally it seems that two of the biggest names on the grid have tools that will lead to a real title battle this season
For the first time in the hybrid era – seven seasons so far – Mercedes has not secured a pole position at the first race of a new season. We’ve become so used to seeing the Silver Arrows blitz on the field even after a difficult pre-season that was a question mark until the end of Q3, but Red Bull’s pre-season form was held true on Saturday .
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Max Verstappen will start from pole position for just the fourth time in his career, and will be joined by defending champion Lewis Hamilton. It’s almost like a symbolic grid as the young candidate looks to take the crown from the most successful driver in history, and at true speed it looks like Verstappen has an advantage.
But Hamilton will know what a big blow it would be if he could find a way despite a slight car shortage this weekend, and is already encouraged by the fact that the gap isn’t as big as it used to be. it was after a test. One thing is for sure: Max is not going to be easy, and the battle to Turn 1 will be exciting to watch.
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2. Three teams looking at a podium
Ferrari, AlphaTauri and McLaren were all close to the top three in terms of qualification
The fight for pole positioning caught the eye but another close-up battle appeared just late in the scramble for the best rest, and this is one that could be rewarded on Sunday.
While Valtteri Bottas went into third place, it was less than 0.1s clear from Charles Leclerc who took fourth place ahead of Pierre Gasly. The raw distance from the Ferrari is a encouraging sign after a difficult 2020, and Leclerc says it’s a legitimate reflection of their performance as everyone was running soft tires in Q3, but Gasly was crucial on media in Q2 and thus start a favorite fertilizer.
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That should give him a edge in the first half of the race and help with strategy, as Red Bull and Mercedes are starting out on media as well, but it’s not a guarantee of success. And just behind Gasly are the McLaren pair of Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris. Divided by just 0.047s, the two teammates will have the opportunity to work together to try and improve against the next two cars.
3. Sergio Perez needs another Bahrain fight
The new Red Bull driver had a tough testimonial and fell out in Q2
Sergio Perez had a bittersweet relationship with Bahrain last year, seeing a podium at the Bahrain Grand Prix snatched away with a reliability issue in the closing laps, before then going from first lap spin to winning the second race at the Sakhir circuit.
This year, it’s another difficult chapter so far, as his first race weekend with Red Bull hasn’t gone ahead and Mexico has dropped out in Q2. The main issue was his first lap time being wiped out due to being above track limits, meaning he was all on his second attempt – and the heroic call to pay off didn’t pay off. stay on medium tires as it dropped out less than 0.1s.
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But Perez’s strength has always been his race speed, and especially tire management. That could be crucial as he tries to make his way past a number of cars starting on soft tires ahead of him, while getting a free selection of compounds for when the lights are turned on. -mach. He will be desperate to show Red Bull that the faith is in good shape, as the team is trying two cars to fight Mercedes, so keep an eye out for his opening lap and first stint in particular.
2021 Bahrain GP deserving: Sergio Perez angry with Q2 hit
4. What can the new drivers do?
Seven of the 10 teams have made changes to their drive lines
It may be that, in an area where 70% of the crews have at least one new driver in their cars, all the top five are familiar with their current crews. Ricciardo in the sixth is one of McLaren ‘s new faces, but there was also hard work from Carlos Sainz and an impressive Q3 appearance for Fernando Alonso in the eighth and ninth.
The same cannot be said of Sebastian Vettel, who was unfortunate to be caught out with yellow flags on his last run in Q1 and eliminated at the first hurdle, starting 18th temporary on the grid for Aston Martin.
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For all three, it will be interesting to see how they cope in a race situation, with Sainz battling with his former team McLaren and Alonso looking to recover to speed after two years on depart from F1. Then again, his ability to get into the top 10 with an Alpine car that showed no speed at all in 2021 before making a testament is a sign that it won’t take the double world champion long to be back so well .
And after a difficult 2020, exacerbated by the lack of pre-season test miles in 2021, Vettel could do it with a regular clean run to help him settle in at his new team. But from so long ago, his race could have been full of danger as he tried to make his way through the field towards the points.
5. Rookies and Alfa Romeo revival
Yuki Tsunoda stole the show early in a testimonial but found himself starting near another surprise package
At the end of Q1, Yuki Tsunoda was the name on the lips of most F1 fans after rookie AlphaTauri put up the second fastest time behind Verstappen and only needed one run to advance . Unfortunately for the Japanese driver, that’s as good as it got when he crashed in Q2 trying to improve on mid-range tires, but it was a display of confidence that AlphaTauri took the lead before that strategy.
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Tsunoda is definitely out of position in 13th because of both the speed of the car and is already shown in Bahrain, and if you saw him race in Formula 2 you will know that afraid to make a few moves, so expect him to make some ground if he doesn’t make an early rookie mistake.
Rookie’s mistakes are something that the surrounding cars won’t bother as much with, however, as Alfa Romeo starts on both sides of Tsunoda, with Antonio Giovinazzi in the 12th and Kimi Raikkonen in the 14th. After a difficult 2020, Alpha seems to have made a big step forward this year and Giovinazzi was just 0.084s away from reaching Q3.
WATCH: How Verstappen beat Hamilton to the first pole position of the season in Bahrain
Faster cars may be behind them, but getting to know the Alpha line could be an advantage in the way for points in the opening of the season.