Bahrain Grand Prix: Rampant Red Bull Charges
The Big Picture The big issue for Formula 1 right now is tyres. Its as sticky a topic as the rubber itself, dominating the picture when it comes to race day as we have clearly seen in China and Bahrain. Despite all the excellent and exciting racing that made this Bahrain GP one of the best for years, it was fundamentally decided by tyres and race strategy, with the teams that quietly got on with their race and kept out of trouble, such as Lotus and Force India, taking the biggest prizes. Mercedes race plan was crippled by tyre wear, especially for Rosberg, and McLaren lost out on better points with Button as he had to make a fourth pit stop. China saw a soft tyre that was so useless it could only manage about six laps before being drastically off the pace, making the teams desperate to avoid using it, only forced to by the FIAs imposed faux-tyre war regulations that demand they use both compounds in a race. In a modern Formula 1, there is simply no point that a driver can use the full potential of the car, because the tyres will simply fall apart underneath him. In a bid to improve on-track action and remove the strategic element of pit stops from races, the FIA banned refuelling and ordered Pirelli to make tyres that couldnt last, unlike the sublime predecessors supplied by Bridgestone up to 2010. But overall this has backfired; races are now more strategic than ever as teams work to preserve the tyres, to the point of not running in final qualifying sessions, playing a long game on strategy to make sure they arent caught on a set of worn out primes with five laps to go as their rivals bear down on them inexorably with a set of fresh options at two seconds a lap. With an important discussion regarding the rubber compounds due before the next race, we can only hope something is done to improve the situation that is turning Formula 1 into an endurance race. The weekend saw three unexpected rear tyre failures in the heat of Bahrain for Hamilton and Massa that may have had serious consequences and will surely add weight to the demands for compromise on the tyre life. The Small Picture The small picture this weekend contains Jules Bianchi, the rising star and sting in the tail driving for Marussia Cosworth. The young Frenchman and former Ferrari reserve driver has dominated the back of the grid, qualifying and finishing highest of the back four cars in the first three races and only missing out in Bahrain due to Pics updated Caterham. Despite four stops due to tyres he still took a solid 19th ahead of teammate Chilton and set the 14th fastest lap ahead of five other manufacturers, including Pics updated Caterham that out-qualified him for the first time in 2013. Its good to see a young driver working his way up in Formula 1 after displaying genuine talent, as they should do. The field contains far too many inexperienced pay drivers these days that have secured their seat through finance rather than talent. This is not to say that Bianchi doesnt do his part financially, or that other young rookies arent worthy of Formula 1, but perhaps this one is just a little bit more worthy than others. From Behind the Glasses Personally I found the Bahrain Grand Prix to be highly entertaining; a frantic and furious affair in places that saw full-contact, high-speed racing between some of the worlds best drivers. The two McLarens racing Nico Rosberg, with Button picking up a double-slipstream to attempt an overtake that saw them three-abreast into turn one, Perez and Button racing side-by-side mercilessly, the switching position between Webber and Hamilton in the final stint that was finished on turn one of the final lap, only for Perez to barge past Webber later in the lap, or a top ten battle that saw five cars covered by just 2.5 seconds. All these and more made Bahrain a fantastic race to watch, even if the result at the sharp end was a carbon copy of 2012, and something weve seen far too much of. I just hope this level of competition can continue, with different winners, to make this a championship worth watching. After all, if Alonso can almost take the title, and arguably deserve it, in 2010 and 2012 using a car that was far from as good as the one he has now, what might he do this year?