2010 Bahrain Grand Prix preview
Ferrari's long-run pace marks them out as candidates for victory
The off-season finally draws to a close and the teams have assembled at Bahrain for the first round of 2010.
After little to no testing the 12 teams have to tackle one of the most punishing tracks on the calendar in the first race of the year.
With Michael Schumacher returning, exciting new driver pairings at McLaren and Ferrari, new teams and more this is one of the most highly anticipated Grand Prix seasons I can remember. Who will start the year with a victory?
Practice clues to form
Pre-season testing has been even more difficult to read than usual now that the cars can have much greater differences in fuel loads.
That will also make practice tricky to suss but with 24 cars all on-track at roughly the same time we should have a much better idea of form by Friday evening.
Many teams will be running their latest aerodynamic upgrades for the first time, including Ferrari and Mercedes. McLaren already ran theirs at the last test session at Barcelona and are only bringing minor developments to Bahrain.
McLaren will also learn whether the stewards approve of their design of rear wing, which has been challenged by Red Bull among others. They have brought alternate parts if it is deemed illegal.
We also expect to see the first appearance of the HRT cars in practice, with Bruno Senna and Karun Chandhok at the wheel.
High temperatures and high brake wear are the two greatest demands at Bahrain. Although we have already seen the teams testing their cooling solutions they haven’t been able to simulate the consistently hot 30C-plus temperatures forecast for this weekend.
Changes to the track
Bahrain International Circuit track map (Click to enlarge)
For the seventh running of the Bahrain Grand Prix the race will be held on the longest of the track’s configurations, which is now called the ‘new Grand Prix circuit’.
At a whisker under 6.3km this is the second-longest track on the calendar. Only Spa-Francorchamps is longer, but the two circuits couldn’t be more different. The new section at Bahrain adds even more slow corners to a track which had a lot of tight bends to begin with.
The extra section itself isn’t new, but it isn’t used much, so the teams will find it has even less grip than the rest of the circuit. It’s also quite narrow – as little as 11m in places whereas parts of the original track are 16m wide.
This all adds up to a section which is not likely to produce much overtaking but could provoke errors from drivers. Locked wheels and flat-spotted tyres could prove especially costly in the new refuelling-free era so drivers will have to exercise caution in the curved braking zones.
Drivers to watch
You could pick any of them, really, but here’s the four I’ll have my eye on the most:
Michael Schumacher – Obvious, really. Mercedes aren’t far off the pace and their upgrade could bridge the gap. Can he win on his return to F1?
Fernando Alonso – Finally back in a top team but the balance of power between him and Felipe Massa will be crucial.
Jenson Button – The other driver who’s made a big off-season move. We’ll get our first glimpse of how the two most recent world champions compare head-to-head in identical cars.
Bruno Senna – Both Senna and Karun Chandhok face daunting challenges in getting the HRT up and running. Will the car run? How far off the pace will it be?
Remember to join us for the F1 Fanatic live blogs during every session of the Bahrain Grand Prix. Keep an eye out for the live blogs on the site during the free practice periods, qualifying and of course the race itself.
Kubica fan said on 11th March 2010, 9:03
Go Robert Go!!!
James said on 11th March 2010, 9:05
To any of the people that do karting in the United Kingdom, has anybody noticed how similar the new track looks to Whilton Mill’s full configuration? Haven’t noticed it up until now.
alan said on 11th March 2010, 9:05
I think that with a lot of new spec cars – low practise hours and relatively – except in some cases – michael low experience of F1 racing there may be more incidents of turning into another car failing to see an ovetaking car etc – I also think that ant car that hasnt been driven before should be withdrawn on safety grounds at least but heh ho – lets see if I’m wrong – ps I hope I am – roll on practise day
alan said on 11th March 2010, 9:06
sorry for ant read any? – whoops!!
nayanesh said on 11th March 2010, 9:19
I cant wait anymore..Its killing me….Bring it on 2010 F1 season
sumedh said on 11th March 2010, 9:19
The winner of the first grand prix generally goes on to win the WDC, History has shown.
I have put down Massa as my pick for the winner in the predictions page. Lets hope he doesn’t disappoint.
The new section I think reduces the chances of overtaking. Downforce will be only slightly lower than in Monaco / Hungary / Singapore.
Drivers will have to be careful at Turn 1 though. It is the longest breaking zone, any lock-up / flat spotting there, and you are looking at a really slow and long lap to the pits.
Eje Gustafsson said on 11th March 2010, 15:23
My bet is Hamilton will flat spot his tires on the first corner. Expect at least 3 cars out during first lap 2 of those the new cars.
Unless 2 or more of the new cars starts from the pitlane. I would expect you will see at least one of the new cars to start from Pitlane.
BasCB said on 11th March 2010, 9:55
I think Alonso will be up front, but never forget Schumacher. I think Mercedes expect to really be there with their new floor and diffusor.
Massa has a good score on this track (without the extra bends) and Button has nice memories about the last time he was here as well.
lotus49 said on 11th March 2010, 10:02
Early to bed tonight. Up early tomorrow, full pot of coffee on the go and the live timing screens, now working again, up and running. BBC TV on the red button, Radio Five Live for the commentary. Bliss! Only twenty one hours to go now. Get that green light on.
Penelope Pitstop said on 11th March 2010, 10:17
Out of the hospital just in time! I just hope I’ll have the energy to stay awake through everything (I think the excitement will keep me up–I felt giddy yesterday after nothing more than setting my DVR)!
steph said on 11th March 2010, 11:28
Nice to see you back on here Penelope and hope you’re feeling better soon :)
steph said on 11th March 2010, 11:32
I’d say watch Massa and Hamilton too. Massa’s only just returning and he generally does pretty well at this track. Hamilton should cope with the rules fine but if he’s too aggressive (perhaps especially at the end of the track) he could get into trouble with tyres or even brakes. I think he will be fine for it-and any driver could really make the mistake-but he’s probably the most aggressive driver on the grid so there is a bit of room for some action or mistakes from him.
wdf2 said on 11th March 2010, 12:17
Does anyone know if it’s possible to pick up live English-language commentary on the Continent (Germany)? I’ll take anything – radio, web — as long as I can mute the German on RTL, which you can bet will be 83.5% about Schumacher.
Prisoner Monkeys said on 11th March 2010, 12:34
Mark Webber has reportedly groaned after samping the circuit extension. He says it’s just a load of tight corners, but some of the other feedback on it has been positive: Adam Cooper points out that the new section is almost constantly climbing or dropping, and that the sequence of bends from five to nine get progressively tighter, so there’s a lot of lateral changes in direction.
Calum said on 11th March 2010, 17:24
I wouldn’t bet on Hamilton, he is rubbish here!
John H said on 11th March 2010, 23:30
apart from last year
PJA said on 11th March 2010, 18:03
I don’t know if others knew but after looking at the FIA website it seems Alain Prost is going to be a steward for the Bahrain GP
Pre Event Information
http://www.fia.com/EN-GB/MEDIACENTRE/F1_MEDIA/Pages/pre_event.aspx
Stewards’ Biographies – Prost
http://www.fia.com/EN-GB/MEDIACENTRE/F1_MEDIA/Documents/bhn-steward-prost.pdf
Martin said on 12th March 2010, 17:20
hasn’t Hamilton had consistent problems w/ tire wear? trying to recall specifics…