The situation has changed a lot during this offseason in Formula 1. It seems that the balance of power atop the caravan shifted and that we might see a new order in the standings, something we haven’t been able over the recent few years. Max Verstappen’s driving during the practices and the tests has been magnificent. Per many, he is the top favorite to win the title, not the reigning champ and one of the best ever, Lewis Hamilton. Also, we might see Red Bull dethroning Mercedes as well. That is why this season promises a lot more drama than the previous one.
Unfortunately for Ferrari’s fans, the Prancing Horse is still not competitive enough, and its future in the F1 is not promising at all. They got rid of Sebastian Vettel, ruining his best years, and adding one more fierce opponent to the already long list.
Preview
We waited to see the results of Friday’s training sessions before writing this article. There was no need for us to rush and write something on Thursday, particularly because of the fact that this is the first race of the year and that we weren’t quite sure which teams and drivers hide their abilities during the offseason.
Max Verstappen was unstoppable in both sessions, setting the fastest results and dominating the track. Many would question his ability to repeat the drive from yesterday’s first part of the training, but he easily shut down all those doubters.
Per many, this is the season when the young Dutchman has more than realistic chances of winning the championship. He already indicated a massive potential last year, with him being the only one who competed with the Mercedes’ duo, Hamilton-Bottas.
Hamilton was third yesterday, with Lando Norris ending as the second. We are talking about the second practice session, the one that took place during the evening, with the street lights on.
McLaren’s Norris might be the guy who takes a massive step forward this year. In general, McLaren was very good during the offseason, presenting a new vehicle with several upgrades compared to the last year’s one.
As for Ferrari… well, the situation is not good in the Italian manufacturer. They have been struggling for a while, and it seems that the Prancing Horse is ahead of yet another disappointing season. They haven’t done anything big to improve the vehicle, which was obvious yesterday. Carlos Sainz was fourth, and Charles Leclerc 12th, and that summarizes everything.
Previous Race
Lewis Hamilton won the previous two races here, He and Sebastian Vettel have four wins each at the Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix. Fernando Alonso has three and Felipe Massa two.
In 2020 Lewis ended first, Max Verstappen second, and Alexander Albon third. As you could see, Red Bull Racing Honda had two places at the podium.
Overall, this is a tack with lots of straight sequences, and several harsh and slow curves.
Prediction
After seeing Verstappen driving yesterday, we have to say that the Dutch driver has the highest chances of winning this event. Max was confident, smooth, and above all other things, he was routine. Red Bull’s driver looked as if he had a walk in the park, which can’t be said for all other of his rivals.
Therefore, our pick here is Verstappen to win, with the odds at BetXChange for that outcome set at 1.10.
