2014 Bahrain Grand Prix grid

2014 Bahrain Grand Prix

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Row 11. Nico Rosberg 1’33.185
Mercedes
2. Lewis Hamilton 1’33.464
Mercedes
Row 23. Valtteri Bottas 1’34.247
Williams
4. Sergio Perez 1’34.346
Force India
Row 35. Kimi Raikkonen 1’34.368
Ferrari
6. Jenson Button 1’34.387
McLaren
Row 47. Felipe Massa 1’34.511
Williams
8. Kevin Magnussen 1’34.712
McLaren
Row 59. Fernando Alonso 1’34.992
Ferrari
10. Sebastian Vettel 1’34.985
Red Bull
Row 611. Nico Hulkenberg 1’35.116
Force India
12. Daniil Kvyat 1’35.145
Toro Rosso
Row 713. Daniel Ricciardo 1’34.051
Red Bull
14. Jean-Eric Vergne 1’35.286
Toro Rosso
Row 815. Esteban Gutierrez 1’35.891
Sauber
16. Romain Grosjean* 1’35.908
Lotus
Row 917. Pastor Maldonado 1’36.663
Lotus
18. Kamui Kobayashi 1’37.085
Caterham
Row 1019. Jules Bianchi 1’37.310
Marussia
20. Marcus Ericsson 1’37.875
Caterham
Row 1121. Max Chilton 1’37.913
Marussia
22. Adrian Sutil** 1’36.840
Sauber

*Ten-place penalty for unsafe release in Malaysia.
**Five-place penalty for impeding Grosjean

Image © Daimler/Hoch Zwei

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Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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79 comments on “2014 Bahrain Grand Prix grid”

  1. What a exciting and unpredictable qualifying. *yawn*

    1. yes, we all knew well ahead of time that Rosberg would be on pole right? No, I don’t think so, there were several interesting fights.

      1. Not really. I predicted it as he also was on pole last year. It’s a track that suits him.

      2. Either Rosberg or Hamilton. Compared to this Mercedes-dominance the last 9 races of 2013 were thrilling!

        1. No they weren’t! We switched one dominant driver for a dominant team, which of course is two drivers. That makes it an increase of 100%. ;)

        2. You mean those were we were all but certain that Vettel got pole and would win them @lheela? Curious.

          Either there is not much difference, or we can appreciate that at least both Mercedes drivers have each-other as competition. And it seems Red Bull is close enough behind at times to keep their on their toes.

    2. You’re all like little children squabbling around the table and fighting for scraps; butting in with your all so clear crystal ball predictions.
      It’s fairly boring and predictable which team will come first and second. (Just look at most online sporting betting outfits)
      There is however some slight interest as to who will come out as best of the rest. Also some potentially team mate battles all along the grid; and it’s for that reason that I’ll watch it tomorrow.

  2. That was so boring it’s unbelievable.

    1. It was quite unpredictable. What else did you expect?

      1. My expectations have nothing to do with it. Throughout the years I’ve seen plenty of predictable qualifying sessions, which I usually didn’t mind because at least the cars were interesting to look at. It’s 2014 though and the cars look slow, ugly and boring all throughout. Wow, the extra torque means drivers have to correct their cars while they slowly creep through corners! Yay… I know laptimes are similar, but conditions were very, very different. There’s nothing to make up for predictability because the cars themselves are so boring to watch.

        1. So… It was boring because you think the cars are ugly.

          I must say, that’s a somewhat original complain.

  3. Was Fernando asleep at the wheel of that Ferrari? :(

  4. What happened to Alonso and Vettel? Both so far off their team mates?

    1. Vettel had a gearbox problem. No idea for Alonso.

    2. Apparently Vettel had a gearbox problem and Alonso was losing power throughout. Expect people to ignore those details as they see fit…

      1. It’s a good thing that they both had issues, if only one or them had had them, the other’s fanbase wouldn’t shut up about it being excuses.

    3. Vettel was reporting downshifting problems (though they didn’t seem that bad) and Alonso a loss of power (I haven’t heard much on that).

  5. Rosberg was excellent, Ricciardo was excellent, Bottas was excellent.

    Vettel, Alonso and Hülkenberg were all pretty disappointing.

    1. ouch, I didn’t get by the language bouncer with my original reply)))

      Yeah, happened to Hulk, I had predicted him for the podium… That was probably the biggest disappointment of this qualy for me.

      1. *what happened

    2. I wonder if its a gain to discount qualifying setup in order to gain speed in the race? He’s normally good around here.

      1. Perhaps @joshua-mesh: all three usually aren’t bad around Bahrain, particularly Alonso and Vettel. Unusual situation all round.

      2. i guess there is no mechanical issue with hulk car …he just could put up a decent lap when it matters most and perez is really good on this track .I am not sure but fourth is perez best ever qualy position

  6. Some interesting results)) I wonder what happened to Alonso, this was really bad…

  7. Really happy for Nico. Hope he fights for the win tomorrow.

  8. I wonder if Alonso, Vettel and/or Hulkenberg had any mech. issues. Such a difference between them and their team mates is weird. Anyways, the three of them are close and going for comebacks, that should be fun!

    Good for Rosberg, will he make up for a somewhat weak Malasya? I hope he does, it will keep things interesting.

    I must say, I like this grid.

    1. Vettel had issues on downshifts, Alonso didn’t have full power in Q3. I don’t know about Hulkenberg though.
      Anyway, I agree, interesting grid for tomorrow.

      1. Interesting, where did you get the info? Not that I doubt you, but I missed that in the transmission and I can’t fin infos about it.

        1. No problem :)
          Vettel reported the problem during Q2, while Alonso said that he had problems in the interviews post quali.

          1. Oh I see, thanks! :)

  9. HUL out of Q3, that was really unexpected…

  10. I preferred when aero made a difference in lap time, not engine asis the case this year. This years best car is only good for 3rd because of an underpowered engine. Lewis… Typical of his career, has the momentum and car and fluffs it.

    1. yeah because second on the grid is terrible. He’s rubbish, starting on the front row in all three races. He might as well give up on the championship he really should go back to GP2 to justify his place in F1

  11. Pole Time prediction – 01:33.273
    Pole prediction – Nico Rosberg

    My prediction is going well so far this weekend!

    1. And my weekend prediction got completely messed up :(
      Vettel and Hulk Way down the order…

      1. You think that’s bad! I completely forgot that RIC had a 10 place penalty, along with that Vettel and Alonso completely ruined it and Hami didn’t get pole…

        1. You think that’s bad! I completely forgot that BOT didn’t have a grid penalty and left him out of my 5…

  12. I think we’ll see Sutil at the back because he seriously blocked MAL.

    1. GRO, but yeah you were right about the pen!

  13. In response to everyone saying it was boring and predictable, I actually quite enjoyed it. Accepting that the Mercedes’ were going to lock out the front row, it was still an intriguing battle between the two drivers and ultimately Nico starting in front is a good outcome for the race. Generally both he and Hamilton get good starts so we should get a good battle with Lewis pressing up behind him.

    Equally the battle for third place is unbelievable – pick any of the Force India, Williams, McLaren, Red Bull and Ferrari drivers and you could feasibly see them on the podium tomorrow. That will certainly keep me interested.

    Then there is the battles between team-mates as well, which are close at the nearly every team – now Raikkonen and Perez have taken their first blow to their respective team-mates.

    I think it has the potential to be a very interesting race tomorrow.

    1. @ben-n I guess you haven’t seen any of the long runs then…

    2. Red Bull drivers on the podium? Starting from 10 and 13, and with mediocre top speed at best that is a bold assumption! Hulkenberg is very much out of place, too. McLarens seem to just lack the pace in general right now.

      Also, last year everyone was moaning that Vettel’s dominance is killing the sport. Nobody back then said “Accepting that Red Bull is going to lock out the front row…” and so on. The only thing that really changed, is that it’s Mercedes now. If the other teams don’t step up their games massively by the end of the season, viewer figures might fall to a long time low.

      1. I think the difference last year was that it was a given that Vettel would beat Webber. With the Mercedes line-up this year, you can have both of them fighting each other, despite Hamilton being quite a bit better over long runs.

        I’m not making an assumption, I’m saying that with the right strategy and reliability and a bit of luck going their way, I could easily see either Vettel or Ricciardo in third, even from 10th and 13th.

        1. Both RBR cars are over 15kph slower than all cars ahead of them. Where are they going to overtake them then?

          1. Take Vettel – a good start and he’s up to 7th, 2 cars retire, 5th. Up behind 3rd and 4th, pits a little early, gets the jump on them, 3rd. Without having to overtake anyone on track.

            I’m not saying it’s going to happen, but you must understand that at least 50% of position changes are not down to overtaking on track.

          2. @ardenflo … pretty sure Ricciardo just overtook Magnussen…

          3. @Ben-n Yeah, lovely move. But Look at how long Ric is already stuk behind Kimi.

          4. @ardenflo – not to rub it in too much but Ricciardo was within a second of a podium come the end of the Grand Prix, during a race featuring multiple overtakes, including several on Mercedes-powered cars. ;-)

            Hope you can look forward to the Chinese Grand Prix a little more than this one!

          5. @ben-n Thanks to a SC though. Otherwise there would be nothing more for them than 7th and 8th. Possibly the Ferraris would’ve taken their one-stopping asses.

      2. “Viewing figures might fall” you mean like they did when Senna, Clark. Schumacher, started winning with ease.

    3. Agreed. I couldn’t get to any proper coverage so relied on twitter updates, which made it all feel quite exciting. And I agree that it could be interesting. Cars out of position is usually a sign of good things to come: either overtaking, pull-something-out-of-the-bag performances, or frustration and tempers and maybe even a little carnage. Red Bull aren’t a top team just because they can build fast cars though; their operation is slick throughout, and I expect them to come up with something. Whether its a left-field strategy play or ‘wildcard regulation usage’* I can’t guess. But even if it isn’t a huge, exciting overtake-athon, I’ll probably enjoy it anyway.

      * Not trying to stir up pro or anti-Red Bull replies. Its all drama to me, and whether I like their methods or it makes me mad, it certainly isn’t boring.

  14. Raikkonens performance gives me some hope for Ferrari but looks like it’s going to be another round of which Mercedes wins.

    1. @daveF1, with the closeness of the performance of, Williams, Ferarri, Force I, McLaren,and RBR coming from behind, will it realy matter if Lewis and Nico are battling each other half a lap ahead.

  15. Wow, didn’t expect Kimi to be up there, he has been struggling since the start of the season. Good for him though.
    Happy for Rosberg, it’s great to have a bit of a battle up there. And I’m really excited for Bottas in P3! Finally we can see what the Williams is capable of from a decent starting position.

  16. GJ by Ricciardo once again, putting Vettel in the shade.. Such a shame he has the grid penalty putting him behind Vettel.

    Very happy with the step forward on Kobayashi’s car. Not too far off Q2 on raw pace and close enough to fight the cars ahead during the race I hope.

    1. Gearbox put Vettel on the shade, not RIC.

    2. LOL… it’s funny how peoples blind hatred toward Seb lets them ignore vital facts (such as gear box issues) before they jump to the “Good to see Ric leave Vettel behind” conclusions.

  17. Well disappointing that Lewis locked up . I think this battle is far from over . Looks like Nico’s race consistency will get to Lewis . Lewis better watch out from any aggressive move from Bottas.

    1. @hamilfan What consistency? There is none Lewis also doesn’t have at the moment. I think Lewis has the upperhand both on saturday and on sunday.

      I also doubt Bottas will make a aggressive move that might result in a crash, Perez next to him however.

      1. @ardenflo

        Is Ham the quicker on long runs?

      2. Lewis has no upper hand. If after the first lap they maintain their qualifying position then it will remain that way. Plus the fact Rosberg won the first race with Hamilton’s early retirement, it means another win for Rosberg will require Hamilton winning 4 races.
        A cynical mind will just say the championship is all but determined by the outcome of this race.

        1. Neither driver has the upper hand, they have only done two races and three qualifying.
          LH = Quali 1, 1, 2 Race = DNF, 1
          NR = Quali 1, 2, 1 Race = 1, 2

          Looks pretty even at the moment. Do you really think either driver is going to suddenly give up and drop in performance?

  18. very unpredictable qualy…perez out qualifying hulk,kimi qualifying alonso
    Ric better then vettel such a shame he has to drop back even gut look more in control then sutil….interseting

  19. Nobody is going to comment the picture that McLaren publish on twitter? strange isn’t it?

    1. Plenty of rummors at the circuit right now.

  20. I see many people oversee that Vettel had a gearbox problem. We won’t know where exactly he might be, but as quoted from Toto Wolff “Vettel himself is a 3 to 4 tenths quicker”

  21. OmarR-Pepper (@)
    5th April 2014, 17:33

    check row 5!!!

  22. kenneth chapman
    5th April 2014, 17:39

    what a stunning drive from ricciardo. he certainly has the goods. a great pity for the 10 place grid penalty through no fault of his own. that penalty was grossly unfair. once again penalise the team….not the driver!!!!

  23. This is surprising.

  24. Glad I didn’t see too much of that in the comments. Looking forward to the race tomorrow, hopefully we’ll finally see the Mercs actually pushing each other instead of one just taking off into the distance.

    For those who find F1 2014 boring, just don’t watch. That action will speak far louder than any comments, which the FIA will not listen to anyway (if they didn’t drop the double points, there’s no hope). Otherwise, feel free to use the following template if you want to continue making your life miserable:

    whinge whine whinge too slow
    whinge whine too ugly
    bla bla too boring

    1. whinge whine whinge too slow
      whinge whine too ugly
      bla bla too boring

      If you say that really fast it sound like this years engine .Or am i just being facetious. LOL

  25. Ted Kravitz before the start of the season, when asked how many times Daniel Ricciardo will outqualify Sebastian Vettel, said “one”. Well, three races in and that prediction’s gone to the dust bin, hasn’t it?

    1. Then Ted is not smart as he has proven that Dan is capable of being a qualifier even in the STR last year. Daniel has beaten Sebastian 2 times out of the possible 3 qualifying sessions

  26. There’s an oops at the ten place penalty placed at GRO instead of RIC.

  27. ROS pole time is more than 1 sec faster and HAM time is almost 1 sec faster than the next non Mercedes car. Hope there is a fair fight between them and no team orders

  28. The * for Ricciardo seems to have been placed next to Grosjean by mistake!

  29. Keith, you need to recheck the grid for mistakes that you made as there is nothing marked near Ricciardo’s name while for Grosjean there is

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