Round two of the new Formula 1 season heads to the Kingdom of Bahrain where Ferrari have dominated in the past, but Mercedes made a statement in Melbourne.
Bahrain, the heat and dust (slippy, can lead to higher than normal tyre wear) are the hardest bit about the track. Much more traditional than the street layout of Albert park “Twilight race” means that temperatures between sessions, and race, differ so getting consistent, representative data is difficult.
With 3 DRS zones and the traditional layout, it’s the first time this season that fans will get to see whether the new rules designed to make overtaking easier this year have worked or not.
Vettel has got back to back wins in 2017 and 2018, the latter showing was a well-managed race on worn out tyres, and has won more times than anyone on the grid and coupled with the higher track temperatures that should help keep their tyres in the operating window and settle the balance issues they had in Melbourne, Ferrari are a strong bet this weekend.
That said, Mercedes were so dominant in Melbourne it’s hard to write them off and with Hamilton having a point to prove after being comprehensively beaten by Bottas, you can expect another strong showing.
Conversely, another win for Bottas could ramp up the pressure on Hamilton, much in the same way Rosberg did in his championship year.
A podium for Verstappen in Melbourne was hondas first f1 podium in the new turbo era and confidence will be high, however, the different demands of the Bahrain track will make a repeat performance much more difficult for the Dutchman.
By Jake Durbin
