Hamilton resists Verstappen until the end to win at Sakhir

The first Grand Prix of the 2021 season promised a lot. He clearly will not have disappointed with a direct and sublime confrontation between Lewis Hamilton et Max Verstappen that everyone had been hoping for for a long time.

Against a backdrop of different tire strategies, the duel initially took place at distance before taking an even more thrilling turn in the last 15 laps of the event.  

Taking advantage of fresher tires, Verstappen, who had controlled the start of the race from pole position before letting go of the controls following a first early stop at Mercedes, began to come back on Hamilton with long strides. 

With 5 laps to go, the Dutchman had entered the DRS zone of the seven-time world champion. On the next pass, Hamilton well countered a first attack from Verstappen at turn 1, before the driver Red Bull does not try his luck again on the outside of turn 4. 

Verstappen came out of this curve on the right in front of the Mercedes but he chose to return the position a few meters further because he had carried out his overtaking outside the limits of the track at turn 4. Hamilton was not asking for that much. 

With a good top speed on a W12 that was said to be so capricious, the Briton seized the opportunity and resisted the attacks of his Dutch rival until the end, while Verstappen seemed to lose his momentum in view of the Checkered flag. 

Hamilton had not won the opening race of a championship since Australia in 2015. His teammate Valtteri Bottas completes the podium, although at a good distance. 

Slowed down by a failed pit stop, the Finn was unable to join the fight for victory. He consoled himself with the bonus point for the best lap in the race following a 3rd stop in the final moments of the GP. 

Mercedes and Red Bull have retained a good margin of maneuver over the other teams, whose best representatives are more than 45 seconds behind the winner. 

Lando Norris however, signs a very good race to take 4th place, ahead of a solid Sergio Pérez (Red Bull), author of another great comeback in Sakhir. The Mexican started from the pit lane following a mechanical problem with his Red Bull during the formation lap.

Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) took an honest 6th place for Ferrari, while Daniel Ricciardo concludes his first race at McLaren in 7th position, ahead of the man he replaces, Carlos Sainz (Ferrari). Yuki tsunoda finishes his 1st race in F1 in the points with 9th place for Alpha Taurias Lance stroll completes the Top 10. 

Disappointment for the French. Qualified 5th, Pierre Gasly fell in the standings after losing his front wing following contact with Ricciardo in the opening laps. The AlphaTauri driver finished 17th. His compatriot Esteban Ocon finished 13th at the end of a difficult race for Alpine, who sees Fernando Alonso giving up due to overheating of the brakes and Ocon being hit from behind by Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin).

The start of this first Grand Prix of the season was eventful to say the least. When the lights went out, all the leaders started cleanly but Nikita mazepin (Haas) led to a rapid intervention by the Safety Car when it lost control of its car upon re-acceleration exiting turn 3. 

The images will undoubtedly have brought back very bad memories for the American team, after the terrible accident suffered by Romain Grosjean at the same place last November. Fortunately, the Russian rookie came out of it without injury, except perhaps his ego. 

The end of the race was also very lively but for much more positive reasons. This 2021 season is launched and in great style!

Discover the full report and analysis of the Bahrain Grand Prix, produced by our special correspondent in Sakhir, in issue 2305 of AUTOhebdo, available tomorrow evening in digital version, and from this Wednesday on newsstands.