SAKHIR, Bahrain — Lewis Hamilton claimed his third F1 win of the season in convincing fashion during a dramatic Bahrain Grand Prix at the Bahrain International Circuit (BIC).
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Nico Rosberg was unable to make it a Mercedes one-two after going wide late on and allowing Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen to clinch second and extend his F1 podium record in Bahrain with a seventh top-three finish.
Sebastian Vettel, who showed excellent pace all weekend had to settle for fifth after Williams’ Valtteri Bottas surprisingly secured fourth to upset the Ferrari-Mercedes stronghold at the top.
It was Hamilton’s second straight win in Bahrain and by the time the firerworks rumbled around the BIC and brought to life the night sky, the Brit had extended his lead at the top of the drivers’ championship to 27 points ahead of Rosberg.
Vettel drops down to third with 65 points, one back from Rosberg and 28 off of Hamilton.
The race was forced into a restart after Felipe Massa’s Williams failed to get off the grid and ended up starting the race from the pit lane.
A messy start to proceedings continued as sparks flew from a number of cars as the heavy braking needed to combat the Bahrain track continued to take its toll.
ROSBERG: “I lost my brakes two laps from the end. It cost me P2 and was disappointing but I’m happy with the car” pic.twitter.com/HbFSdf90ah
— Formula 1 (@F1) April 19, 2015
The drama didn’t stop there as Raikkonen continued Ferrari’s promising weekend by edging Rosberg at the first turn to move into third behind teammate Vettel and leader Hamilton, much to the delight of his Ferrari team who were seen punching the air and roaring in appreciation for the move.
A fascinating battle unfolded between Raikkonen and Rosberg with the pair clashing and going wheel to wheel on lap 4, drawing sharp intakes of breath from the crowd.
Rosberg was then hot on the tail of Vettel and received orders for “a little more break management before attacking.”
The German did just that and moved into second with an impeccable take on the inside on lap 10.
The top four all exchanged places as they went into the pits before the 20 lap mark where normal service was resumed with Hamilton leading Rosberg and the Ferraris playing catch up.
Sixteen laps later and Vettel and Rosberg were at it again, this time the Ferrari going wide and coming off the track to allow Rosberg to get his nose back in front once more.
UPDATED DRIVERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS: It’s now a 27-point lead for @LewisHamilton after four races #BahrainGP pic.twitter.com/mfLyBSyKqk
— Formula 1 (@F1) April 19, 2015
The weekend had been one of huge promise for Ferrari as their long-run pace continued to serve as a reminder to Mercedes that they were genuine contenders this season.
Both Ferraris pushed Hamilton and Rosberg throughout each stage of practice and qualifying, resulting in Mercedes working long into the night on Saturday in order to stave off their rivals’ threat.
Later on in proceedings it was Bottas whose superb defensive drive kept Vettel at bay that caught many off guard as the Williams car made one pit fewer than Vettel’s.
Eventually, however, Mercedes showed their superiority by claiming victory.
After a traumatic run in qualifying, Jenson Button was due to start 20th on the grid but his team had to pull his car from the grid after “an issue originating from his earlier electrical problems.” Team-mate Fernando Alonso managed to get his McLaren up to 14th on the grid after showing some good pace on Saturday but missed out on the points, ending up in eleventh place.
Carlos Sainz’s Red Bull was the second car to bow out of proceedings on the 31st lap and Max Verstappen had also retired five laps later.
UPDATED CONSTRUCTORS’ CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS #BahrainGP #F1atTwilight pic.twitter.com/IbpOnz92Y7
— Formula 1 (@F1) April 19, 2015
Felipe Nasr was the sole Arab representative and his support was evident with a number of fans draped in Sauber colours to cheer on the ‘home favourite’ who crossed the line in 12th.
The action off the track was once again full of life as a steady stream of foot traffic took to the Bahrain International Circuit throughout the day.
Excitement built steadily until fever pitch was reached in time for the 6pm (AST) start, with the GP2 and Porsche GT3 Cup Middle East championships being played out to ever increasing crowds.
In the GP2 sprint it was Campos Racing’s Rio Haryanto who claimed victory three seconds clear of McLaren test driver Stoffel Vandoorne in second and Nathanaël Berthon in third.
Elsewhere, in the Porsche GT3 Cup, Clemens Schmid claimed overall victory of the sixth season of the competition, beating SkyDive Dubai Falcons’ Saeed Al Mehairi in second and Sheikh Hasher Al Maktoum in third. The team from Dubai claimed the team championship in the process.
While the dusk settled on the Porsche championship, the sparks are certain to continue to fly long into the Bahrain night as Formula One’s helter skelter start to the season joyfully divides fans, teammates and rivals in 2015.
