Sakhir (dpa) – It will be exciting. And that’s exactly what Formula 1 wanted to achieve with its rule reform. When the red lights go out on the Bahrain International Circuit for the first Grand Prix of the year on Sunday (4:00 p.m. CET/Sky), a Ferrari will be in front.
The red duo
Charles Leclerc is on pole position, teammate Carlos Sainz is third. “It’s a great reward for the team. It’s good for us, for the Tifosi and maybe for Formula 1 as a whole,” said Ferrari team boss Mattia Binotto. “It’s a boost for the rest of the season.” It is the tenth career pole for Leclerc, he also got his first in Bahrain in 2019. “The last two years have been incredibly difficult for the team,” admitted Leclerc. Of course he himself is happy. Maybe the Monegasque with the powerful Ferrari engine can even get his third Formula 1 victory.
The world champion
A Max Verstappen is not satisfied with second place. In the last qualifying section, however, the Dutchman struggled with the balance of his Red Bull. “We have a good car, that’s the most important thing,” said Verstappen. He is stuck between the two Ferraris at the start. However, Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez follows in fourth place. “I’m definitely confident about the race pace,” said Perez. “There can be a lot of overtaking manoeuvres. Hopefully we can fight with the Ferraris and give the fans a good race.”
The improved Haas team
Mick Schumacher will start from twelfth place. This is his best qualifying result. The son of record world champion Michael Schumacher was not satisfied. “A few mistakes happened on the last lap,” he complained. Schumacher is still aiming for his first Formula 1 points. “I think it will be an exciting year for us,” said Haas team boss Günther Steiner. Why not? The Dane Kevin Magnussen, who was brought back for the released Russian Nikita Masepin, caused huge cheers in the Haas box with seventh starting place. “It’s been crazy. The last two weeks have been crazy,” he admitted. Hydraulic problems worried him with his excellent qualification.
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The German returnee
Nico Hülkenberg only found out on Thursday that he was needed as a replacement pilot. The Corona case Sebastian Vettel opened the lightning comeback for him. He hardly knew the new generation of cars at all. In 17th place, the Rhinelander even left his Aston Martin teammate Lance Stroll behind in qualifying. “Of course we’re not satisfied with 17th place, but personally I’m happy,” said Hulkenberg, who last drove a Formula 1 car 17 months ago. He was able to “do a few clean laps without making any mistakes”, although he had little experience. “I will enjoy every lap in the car.”
The Vice World Champion
Mercedes is behind. This is not a bluff. Lewis Hamilton in fifth and his new teammate George Russell in ninth are just chasing for the time being. “The boys in front of us are in a league of their own,” said record world champion Hamilton. Mercedes must make progress quickly, otherwise world title number eight will quickly disappear from his sight. There is no speed on the straights. “If we could get in the top five, that would be great. I’ll take that immediately,” said team boss Toto Wolff and promised: “We need a few races to sort ourselves out, then we’ll be back.”