F1’s run of wet weekends to end in Bahrain

2012 Bahrain Grand Prix weather

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Rain has fallen on all three race weekends so far this year, but we can say with some confidence that trend is set to end.

Annual rainfall in Bahrain is around 70mm, and we are not likely to see any of that over the coming days.

F1 has arrived at the beginning of the Bahraini summer, when temperatures are climbing towards their annual peak.

After a sunny start on Friday, Saturday and Sunday look set to be cloudier. But this will make little difference to the temperature, which will remain in the high 20C region.

This is slightly below what we’ve seen in recent years. In 2009 – the last time they raced on the same track configuration at Bahrain – race day air temperatures were in the mid-to-high 30s and track temperature peaked at 51C.

The heat places an obvious demand on the drivers, though this part of the world does not feature the same punishing humidity seen in Malaysia or Singapore.

Cooling will be a priority for the cars, and that could lead teams to make compromises on performance.

Blustery winds can be challenging for the teams here as well. As it changes direction, teams can find themselves hitting the rev limiter at the end of Bahrain’s long straights. Getting the balance right this year will be more challenging as the teams will be using DRS here for the first time.

Location of the Bahrain International Circuit


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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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    19 comments on “F1’s run of wet weekends to end in Bahrain”

    1. hope the race won’t be as boring the previous races in Bahrain

      1. Na, it wont. The old track configuration is back, and Pirelli always delivers exciting racing, unlike Bridge-stone. Also, the field is much closer than it was 2 years ago.

        1. I have a feeling that this race will be the most exciting Bahrain race ever.
          But i could be wrong.

    2. Much as I love the idea of another race so soon after China, I still hope this race does not go ahead.

      1. Then perhaps you’re not a fan?

        1. Of course you can be a fan of the sport and all fans want to see races, but what you have said, to me thinks you don’t care about the safety of the drivers, the teams, the FIA, all for wanting to see a race. In the petrol bombing today, that could have been a driver that could have died, it is not safe to go the Bahrain a the moment but they have done, I doubt the race won’t go ahead, but you cannot say somebody is not a fan because they are concered of team safety.

          1. “Of course you can be a fan of the sport and all fans want to see races, but what you have said, to me thinks you don’t care about the safety of the drivers, the teams, the FIA, all for wanting to see a race.”

            Wonder if you where saying that during the previous Brazil GP’s where the public/drivers/teams are activly targeted by gangs. Notably Buttons car having an attempted hijack with submachine guns.

            1. Of course I did and so would have many others, but at this time I am discussing the current situation in Bahrain there is no need to bring Brazil into it, at the moment Bahrain is a dangerous place for Formula 1, as was Brazil, but the way you have quoted my comment is out of context, you have used it and manipulated it to another context, I was responding to a comment which I agree, and then another which said if you agree with cancelling races, you are not a fan of the sport, what I was saying is in any situation where there is a chance of danger, Formula 1 along with other motorsports should NOT take the chance of going there without 100% certainty that the weekend will be safe, did you see the petrol bomb, Force India article, that was not targetting them, it was a bad conincidence, so it is similar to the Button threat that there were people in danger but that shows it is not safe there at the moment.

    3. Temperatures dropping and high winds – I wonder if the threat of a sand storm is higher at this time of year? There was quite a bad one at this time in 2008.

      1. @john-h
        The first day of the Golf Invitational last Friday was cut short by a sandstorm, it’s only 3-4 miles from the track.

        Although there was a stiff breeze through the day, conditions were good for the tournament. It was a welcome change from the previous day when an incredible sand, then thunder, storm forced the pro-cel-am event to be cut to 16 holes.

    4. I don’t think I’m the only one who hopes that the heat won’t punish Mercedes after their victory in China. I really REALLY hope that the time between Malaysia and China helped them to address their tyre issues. China didn’t provide much of a gauge for that as it was so comparatively cool.

      1. @andrewtanner Yes I hope as well, although it might not only be hot and humid, but the track would be very green as well. The Pirelli’s don’t lay so much rubber as the Bridgestone’s and wthus the track mmight be much more abrasive than normal. This will lead to very interesting scenarios as well as teams will need to cope with higher cooling. We might see KERS issues as well i guess. Mercedes might struggle on the face of it but then many other teams may as well.

      2. Yeah it will be interesting to see…I think what appears to be a stable weather weekend should bode well for them at least…can’t speak for the higher temps and how that will affect them, but I know that for all the teams really, who are all dealing with the same tires, it helps them to work on Friday, and Saturday morning, to achieve a certain setup and not have a curve ball thrown at them temp-wise for Sunday. As long as the weather is consistant many teams stand a better chance of nailing that optimum performance window for the tires. But for sure if too much heat becomes a reality that they can’t avoid or minimize, and compared to last weekend it hurts some teams, it could be a problem that will manifest itself for the rest of the season at hot races. We’ll only know how Merc et al deals with heat and Pirelli’s once it happens.

      3. The biggest factor in tire management may be the ability to start up front, run in clean air, and avoid coming out of the pits behind a Williams or FI. I think Mercedes will have a true test of their tire performance when they have a proper fast car right on their tail from the start. In China, Rosberg had Button, eventually, but that was not strong test as Button was slow in qualifying and his 3-stop strategy never put direct pressure on Rosberg. If the McLarens are both on form on saturday and possibly Webber is up there too, Rosberg and Schumacher are going to have the same kind of stroll.

        1. Yea @dmw It will be interesting to see how Rosberg reacts under any pressure but now he finally has that race win under his belt I imagine he will be feeling very confident and hopefully more relaxed than he was in Australia for example.

    5. I dont really want the race to go ahead, but if it does i will still watch. Lets just hope protesters don’t run across the track half way through the race.

    6. Does blood count as a wet race? Because the way that things are going to probably kick off, then it’s sadly going to be full wets. It’s stupid having a race in the middle of what frankly is a cival war. Then again, during the northan island uprisings, they still played football.

    7. Hope it all works out. Bahrain is on notice and depending on how the weekend unfolds will reflect whether Formula One ever goes back there again. We want a good race and want the image of Formula One to be what it is, men and machines challenging nation against nation in pursuit of victory by utilizing the highest degree and technology and knowledge.

    8. Should have read ” the highest degree OF technology and knowledge ” ….

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