Formula One

[Jimbuna]

Newly-crowned seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton has taken his 11th victory of the 2020 season, winning out over the Red Bull pair of Max Verstappen and Alex Albon at the Bahrain Grand Prix – in a race whose start was overshadowed by a horror crash for Haas’ Romain Grosjean.

[Buddahaid]

Very lucky Romain Grojean. I don't think I've ever seen a car go through the Armco before like that and then the driver climbing out while the car burned for eighteen seconds! That is likely the best example of how the halo system can save your life.

[Jimbuna]

Agreed, all the 'experts' are saying it was down to the halo system

[Jimbuna]

Lewis Hamilton to miss Sakhir GP after testing positive for coronavirus.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/55142428

Just as well he's already clinched the title.

[Buddahaid]

Oops. That should lockdown the team for a bit.

[Jimbuna]

I'm waiting on the announcement to see who the replacement driver is going to be but I doubt they'll be anywhere near as fast as Bottas.

[Buddahaid]

George Russell. That will be interesting.

[Jimbuna]

Far too young and inexperienced but all credit to the lad.

Could you imagine the sensation if he were to beat Bottas or even win?

[Buddahaid]

I can see him beating Bottas, and I doubt it will happen, but Bottas has bad luck at times. I'm more interested in seeing what another driver can do with Lewis's car.

[Jimbuna]

I was debating whether to bother watching the race but seeing how it's a young Brit I probably will now.

[Jimbuna]

George Russell continued the impressive start to his Mercedes debut at the Sakhir Grand Prix, leading his second straight session of Friday in Free Practice 2, as Red Bull’s Max Verstappen once again took second place, ahead of the Racing Point of Sergio Perez.

It was tough for any driver to get a perfectly clean lap around the tight 3.5km Bahrain International Circuit Outer Track that stands at just 0.2km longer than Monaco. But once the qualifying simulations were complete, it was Russell who, as in FP1, headed the time sheets with a lap of 54.713s – some two-tenths slower than he managed in the opening session of the weekend.

Practice 1

[Jimbuna]

Practice 2

[Buddahaid]

Well this qualifying has answered one of my questions. I know Lewis is a fantastic driver but I always wondered how much of his success was directly a result of the Mercedes car. Quite a lot apparently since George goes from being way back on the grid in a Williams to being on the front row.

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by Buddahaid

Well this qualifying has answered one of my questions. I know Lewis is a fantastic driver but I always wondered how much of his success was directly a result of the Mercedes car. Quite a lot apparently since George goes from being way back on the grid in a Williams to being on the front row.

Agreed but up until recent times it used to be Ferrari and look how far they've slipped back.

It's now up to the other teams to catch up with Mercedes.

Valtteri Bottas pipped his substitute Mercedes team mate George Russell to pole position for the Sakhir Grand Prix by just 0.026s, as the Silver Arrows set a scintillating pace in qualifying, with the top 10 separated by less than a second.

It was Russell, standing in for Lewis Hamilton who tested positive for Covid-19 ahead of the weekend, who looked the quicker of the two cars on Friday, but Bottas found more pace on Saturday to set up a thrilling showdown in Bahrain.

Bottas was quickest on his second run – first on soft tyres – with Russell slotting into second, but it was the Briton who was lighting up the timesheets on the final runs.

Pole was within his grasp, but he ultimately missed out by a fraction of the second, and while P2 is his best-ever grid slot, defeat to Bottas means his run of 36 qualifying sessions having never been beaten by a team mate since his F1 debut is over.

Looking forward to the race tomorrow and hopefully seeing young George beat Bottas. That is, provided the Mercedes management don't give instructions/orders in Bottas favour because of how close Verstappen is in the points table.

[Buddahaid]

I don't think Team orders a viewed favorably. There was a huge backlash years ago when Ferrari pulled that trick at Hockenheim with the fans booing the podium.