Sunday Debrief: Red Bull take the lead in the 2023 season-opener
- mallikarull
- Mar 5, 2023
- 3 min read
Qualifying - 04.03.23
Max Verstappen takes pole for the season opener in Bahrain, after a thrilling qualifying session under the Sakhir lights.
Some disruption in Q1 with the red flag coming out at the start of the session after parts of Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari came flying off the car leaving debris on the track. Q1 saw Gasly, De Vries, Piastri, Magnussen and Sargeant all out of qualifying. Sargeant crossing the line to finish with the same time as McLaren’s Lando Norris, but not continuing through into Q2 as he qualified after Norris. A quieter Q2 session, with Albon, Tsunoda, Zhou, Bottas and Norris all being knocked out in Q2.
An impressive start to the season for Aston Martins, with both cars making their way into Q3, with Stroll finishing in P8 after having missed testing due to a wrist injury. Fernando Alonso finishing in P5 on his first qualifying for the team, slotting himself between the Ferraris and Mercedes. Hulkenberg also made his way into Q3, finishing in P10 after making his return to the grid with Haas. The Red Bulls locked out the front row, with two-time world champion Max Verstappen taking pole for Sunday’s race. Both Ferrari’s behind the Red Bull’s on the second row – Charles Leclerc settling for P3 after not completing a second run in the battle for pole position, instead saving a set of tyres for Sunday’s race.
Race day – 05.03.23
Victory for Red Bull as they take charge of the season opener in Bahrain. Reigning champion, Max Verstappen finishes in P1, with teammate Sergio Perez finishing in P2 making it a 1-2 for the team. Fernando Alonso crosses the line to finish in P3 after a strong battle with both Mercedes throughout the race, Lewis Hamilton finishing in P5 and George Russel finishing in P7.
Ferraris fight for the podium starting to fade away on Lap 41, when Charles Leclerc retired the car with engine issues. Carlos Sainz now being the only Ferrari on track was unable to hold off the Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso, who pried of P3 from his fellow Spaniard in a thrilling battle through sector 2. Alonso with a hilarious reaction on the team radio as he celebrates with “Yes, bye bye” as he passes the Ferrari.
A difficult race for Esteban Ocon in the Alpine, who faced a five-second penalty for incorrectly lining up on his grid spot at the start of the race, followed by a ten-second penalty for serving that penalty incorrectly, and a further five-second penalty was given for speeding in the pit lane. Ocon not gaining any positions from the back of the grid led to Alpine retiring the car towards the end of the race. A disappointing race for the French driver after starting the race in P9. The opposite results for his teammate Pierre Gasly who made a strong recovery after starting the race from the back of the grid and finished the race in P9 – finishing with points for Alpine on his debut race with the team.
A disappointing race for Oscar Piastri who was forced to retire from his first race in F1 after 13 laps due to an electrical issue. A better race for Rookie Logan Sargeant who finished in P12 after battling Zhou Guanyu for the place.
A perfect start for the Red Bulls, who take the lead in the championship, and a dream start for the Aston Martins, as Fernando Alonso earns a spot on the podium and Lance Stroll finishes the race in P8. Fernando Alonso pleased with the car commenting “Lovely car to drive”.
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