F1: Verstappen tops thrilling Bahrain Qualifying session

March 27, 2021 March 27, 2021

With qualifying complete, there are now less than 24 hours until the lights go out, and plenty of questions have been raised.

Are Mercedes going to struggle to be at the top end, and will it be a Red Bull clean sweep? Will Aston Martin show up, and where are McLaren going to be?

Throughout Q1 and Q2, Mercedes seemed to struggle with their questionable handling on the entrance and exit of corners, but Sir Lewis Hamilton did what he has done throughout his career and drove brilliantly.

Valtteri Bottas, however, struggled with a car he labelled “undriveable”, and was stuck down in the midfield. In Q3, normal service resumed, with the Fin placing third and Hamilton one up in second.

Red Bull, the in-form team, were experiencing a troubling qualifying session, especially when Max Verstappen ran over the serrated kerbs of Turn 2 in Q1, seemingly damaging his under tray.

Sergio Perez also seemed down on pace, being knocked out of Q2 on the medium compound, now starting Sunday in 11th. Verstappen, however, pulled off the ‘perfect lap’ out, setting a pole lap time 0.388 seconds faster than Lewis and both will start tomorrow on medium tyres.

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc managed to jump into fourth, hoping to make fast progress on soft tyres, while Pierre Gasly managed a brilliant fifth in his AlphaTauri.

Carlos Sainz, after engine trouble in Q1, secured eighth, and Tsunoda finished 13th – a good debut despite slotting in P2 after Q1.

Fernando Alonso scored ninth on his return, far better than Esteban Ocon’s 16th, while McLaren start sixth and seventh, Ricciardo beating Norris. The biggest surprise came from Aston Martin, with Lance Stroll rounding out the top 10 and Sebastian Vettel lowly in 18th.

The grid on Sunday:

1st Max Verstappen (Red Bull)

2nd Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)

3rd Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes)

4th Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

5th Pierre Gasly (Alpha Tauri)

6th Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren)

7th Lando Norris (McLaren)

8th Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)

9th Fernando Alonso (Alpine)

10th Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)

11th Sergio Perez (Red Bull)