The Heat is One for max Verstappen - dailycarblog
The Heat is On For Max Verstappen As He Storms To Pole Position For The Bahrain GP
Formula One

The Heat is on but not for Lewis Hamilton who was denied pole position during the Bahrain GP qualifying. The pre-season testing form book was correct. Red Bull, in Max Verstappen’s hands, rubber-stamped their favourites tag to dominate qualifying by setting a time that was over four-tenths ahead of Lewis Hamilton. Valtteri Bottas slotted into third closely followed by Charles Leclerc who hustled his Ferrari into fourth. Pierre Gasly showed promise in the Alpha Tauri while Daniel Riccardo started his McLaren career in sixth with teammate Lando Norris biting at his heels in seventh. Carlos Sainz, who replaced Sebastian Vettel, initially showed promise but found himself six-tenths behind Leclerc. 

F1 refugee-returnee Fernando Alonso marked his return to the sport after a two-year absence with a very credible 9th position. Lance Stroll filled the top ten slot for the newly minted Aston Martin team, nee Racing Point. Teammate Sebastian Vettel fell victim to yellow flags as a result of a donkey being out on track. Vettel exited Q1 in 18th. So, after much pre-season testing speculation, we can finally confirm the pecking order. The Red Bull with Max Verstappen behind the wheel is the fastest car at the moment.

It is still a mystery as to why the Red Bull is so evidently faster for one driver and not for the other. Perez is certainly no slouch but today he was obliterated by Verstappen. We also know Honda has created an engine on par with the Mercedes power unit. And combine that with the consistently best-of-the-field Red Bull chassis and the raw pace of Max Verstappen then you have an unassailable advantage.

The heat is on for Max Verstappen, the pressure is high, but the race is where points are won or lost. If Red Bull can replicate their qualifying pace in the race then, barring reliability issues, the heat is on Red Bull Oh-wo-ho, oh-wo-ho.


2021 Bahrain GP Qualifying:

Pos No Driver Car Q1 Q2 Q3 Laps
1 33 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing Honda 1:30.499 1:30.318 1:28.997 15
2 44 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:30.617 1:30.085 1:29.385 18
3 77 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:31.200 1:30.186 1:29.586 17
4 16 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:30.691 1:30.010 1:29.678 15
5 10 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri Honda 1:30.848 1:30.513 1:29.809 15
6 3 Daniel Ricciardo McLaren Mercedes 1:30.795 1:30.222 1:29.927 18
7 4 Lando Norris McLaren Mercedes 1:30.902 1:30.099 1:29.974 18
8 55 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 1:31.653 1:30.009 1:30.215 17
9 14 Fernando Alonso Alpine Renault 1:30.863 1:30.595 1:30.249 15
10 18 Lance Stroll Aston Martin Mercedes 1:31.261 1:30.624 1:30.601 15
11 11 Sergio Perez Red Bull Racing Honda 1:31.165 1:30.659   11
12 99 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo Racing Ferrari 1:30.998 1:30.708   12
13 22 Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri Honda 1:30.607 1:31.203   9
14 7 Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo Racing Ferrari 1:31.547 1:31.238   12
15 63 George Russell Williams Mercedes 1:31.316 1:33.430   11
16 31 Esteban Ocon Alpine Renault 1:31.724     6
17 6 Nicholas Latifi Williams Mercedes 1:31.936     8
18 5 Sebastian Vettel Aston Martin Mercedes 1:32.056     6
19 47 Mick Schumacher Haas Ferrari 1:32.449     6
20 9 Nikita Mazepin Haas Ferrari 1:33.273     7
The Heat is One for max Verstappen - dailycarblog
Share via
Copy link
Powered by Social Snap