We Have Lift Off

Yes! Formula 1 2019 is officially here, and what a way for it to announce itself.

After quite a modest start to the season in Australia, the events in Bahrain truly showed what we can expect this season. It really silenced the criticism of Formula 1.

It’s safe to say that it is on, Bahrain was overtakes galore. It provides further evidence that the aero changes made to the cars this season have worked; it was a truly brilliant race. Minus the Williams every team seemed competitive, I think it’s probably the closest grid we have had in many seasons.

Ferrari are back, they showed their true pace and it led to some thrilling action on track. They have two drivers who are very respectful of each other, but also fierce competitors, they will fight on track – let’s hope, for Ferrari’s sake their relationship doesn’t turn sour.

Leclerc drove brilliantly all weekend, he might not have had the best start, but he kept calm and calculated, and made his way to a good lead towards the end of the race. It was simply so unlucky for the issues his car encountered in the closing laps. Ferrari had it all, but unfortunately their race just fell apart in the end. With Leclerc’s reliability problems and Vettel’s spin they lost what was almost certainly a double podium. They did recover though, to take some good points, which could be an important result in the constructors championship come the end of the season.

Further down the grid there were more signs that the McLaren revival is finally picking up pace. Norris drove brilliantly and sensibly to finish a very respectable 6th position. Whilst I can’t help but feel sorry for Sainz, he was pretty much taken out of it whilst fighting with Verstappen at the start of the race. It was a real shame, if he had managed to keep his pace matching, or better than the Red Bull, with how the race unfolded he could’ve ended up with a podium.

There is already some bad blood between Sainz and Verstappen from their time at Toro Rosso, and I think this latest incident is going to add fuel to the fire. This could be a battle to keep an eye on throughout the season.

In comparison, Renault seem to have some work to do. They struggled in Qualifying, but turned it around in the race, or so it seemed until the final few laps. Both cars had massive failures going in to the first corner. Along with McLaren – also using the Renault engines – having a failure in Australia that is 3 engine failures in 2 races. For a team like Renault that simply isn’t good enough. They need to address these reliability issues and fast if they are going to reach their target of being a top 3 team.

With a test taking place in Bahrain over the following days it looks like it is going to be absolutely vital for several drivers and teams this season.

It’s only 2 weeks until the next race in China; let’s hope for more of the same exhilarating racing we’ve been treated to.

#Formula1 #FormulaOne #RichardBaxter #GrandPrix