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Well here we are. March 2010. Bahrain. It’s the opening race of the 2010 Formula 1 World Championship and there are great expectations for this year’s season. We have the return of a legend, a union of two British world champions, the arrival of some new teams and faces, with a new rule forbidding refuelling during the race to boot. The cars are heavy with fuel and the drivers raring to go. Will the race live up to the hype? Unlikely, but it’s a solid start to what promises to be a rollercoaster of a season.
After much expectation, the green light finally signalled the start to the 2010 season with Vettel holding off the two Ferraris to stay in the lead on the first bend. The only drama being a massive plume of smoke coming from Webber’s Red Bull which only succeeded in disorientating the chasing pack, resulting in a couple of minor prangs and slight confusion. As a result, Webber dropped back and never really worried any of the contenders; he left that to team mate Vettel.
Unfortunately, there wasn’t too much excitement in the first half of the race. As the drivers totted up the laps, the top three of Vettel, Alonso and Massa continued to dominate, while the other contenders, continued to chase, hoping for an error or mechanical problem further ahead of them.
This hope soon became a reality as Vettel reported a loss of power, which was supremely pounced on first by Alonso and then Massa. Eventually, Hamilton found himself closing in on the Red Bull driver and ultimately storming past him to move up into third.
Similarly, Button had a rather anonymous first race of the season, as he looks to defend his title. The fact that only seven drivers have achieved this feat in Formula 1 history, doesn’t bode well for Button and his McLaren car which was significantly off the pace.
McLaren’s Hamilton completed the podium with an impressive drive in an inferior car and should take a significant amount of encouragement from his performance, especially considering his team mate and reigning champion, Jenson Button only managed a slightly disappointing seventh place. Button was also beaten by the seven times champion Michael Schumacher, who made a solid but unspectacular return to Formula 1.
Bring on Melbourne. Two weeks and counting.
Race Result:
1 Fernando Alonso – Ferrari
2 Felipe Massa – Ferrari
3 Lewis Hamilton – McLaren-Mercedes
4 Sebastian Vettel – Red Bull-Renault
5 Nico Rosberg – Mercedes GP
6 Michael Schumacher – Mercedes GP
7 Jenson Button – McLaren-Mercedes
8 Mark Webber – Red Bull-Renault
9 Vitantonio Liuzzi – Force India-Mercedes
10 Rubens Barrichello – Williams-Cosworth
Driver Standings:
1 Fernando Alonso – Ferrari = 25 points
2 Felipe Massa – Ferrari = 18
3 Lewis Hamilton – McLaren-Mercedes = 15
4 Sebastian Vettel – Red Bull-Renault = 12
5 Nico Rosberg – Mercedes GP = 10
6 Michael Schumacher – Mercedes GP = 8
7 Jenson Button – McLaren-Mercedes = 6
8 Mark Webber – Red Bull-Renault = 4
9 Vitantonio Liuzzi – Force India-Mercedes = 2
10 Rubens Barrichello – Williams-Cosworth = 1
Constructors’ Standings:
1 Ferrari = 43 points
2 McLaren-Mercedes = 21
3 Mercedes GP = 18
4 Red Bull-Renault = 16
5 Force India-Mercedes = 2
6 Williams-Cosworth = 1