Verstappen wins the Bahrain Grand Prix in the F1 season-opening race

The first race of the Formula 1 season was not a big race at all.

Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen opened his world championship defense with a dominant performance on Sunday at the Bahrain Grand Prix, sending a message to the rest of the series that he will not give up his championship easily.

Fastest in qualifying on Saturday, Verstappen pulled off the starting line on Sunday, outlasted his top rivals and teammate Sergio Perez in the first turn and never looked back. His lead grew slowly at first, two seconds, then four, then five. Beat Perez by about 12 seconds: an eternity in a sport where teams measure improvements and advantages in hundreds of seconds.

The big surprise was the car that followed them across the line: Fernando Alonso, the oldest driver in the field at 41, was third in his debut race for Aston Martin to give his team a surprise ride on the podium. Carlos Sainz, in a Ferrari, was a distant fourth.

Aston Martin has raised eyebrows with its brisk performance in the testing and practice sessions over the past two weeks, but even Alonso wasn’t sure that would translate into Sunday’s race. Until I did.

“I had the same feeling from the test – it’s too good to be true,” Alonso said of his ability to stay with the top teams on Sunday. But it seems real. I could have driven another hour on the track.

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner was very uncertain before the race, describing the first start of any season as “a little trip into the unknown”. And Verstappen’s ride wasn’t flawless: he whined about some gear problems on his radio, worried about tire conditions and, later on, suggested Red Bull could still improve.

“Nothing big,” said Verstappen. “Just the little things you always want to improve.”

Sunday’s race in seven pictures

Track position, lap per lap

Verstappen has only surrendered the lead once on Sunday, to teammate Perez, and only for a brief period. He quickly retrieved it and ran away from the field.

Where the race turned

This was effective during the moment Verstappen stepped on the gas. Starting at the pole, he was the fastest to the first corner, then second, third… you get the idea. Charles Leclerc gave Ferrari a few seconds of hope when he passed Red Bull’s Perez in the opening race. But it wasn’t long before he was behind both Red Bulls and, like everyone else, wonders where Verstappen has gone.

Worst days, tidy

• Esteban Ocon. The overwhelming winner of this contest. The Alpine driver managed to line up in the wrong spot on the starting grid, drew a five-second penalty, and then served it incorrectly, Bring a second one. A third penalty – for speeding in the pit lane while he was trying to make up lost seconds – seemed just comical. Honestly, if there was a way to lock keys in an F1 car, Ocon probably would have done it.

• Oscar Biastri. His much-discussed move to McLaren last year, after Alpine announced him as their driver of the year for 2023, produced one of the most heartwarming moments of the new ‘Drive to Survive’ season. But Pestre’s first race for McLaren was a disaster: he crashed out after nearly a dozen uninspired laps, part of a miserable day for his team.

• Charles Locklear. He was in third place when his car’s power unit suddenly gave out. (Basically, the car just died after he was rounding a corner.) Starting the season in the points was not in his plans, or Ferrari’s. Leaving the garage in a million-dollar race car only to go back to it on a Vespa, though? Ouch.

what are they saying

• “This was exactly the start to the season we needed.” – Max Verstappen After the Red Bull went 1-2.

• “Yes! Bye bye.” – Fernando Alonso On the radio, a late pass for Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz put him third and (finally) his Aston Martin on the podium.

• “Unfortunately, we took a step back and Red Bull is on another planet. The third was the best we could hope for.” – Charles Locklearafter his Ferrari teammate Carlos Sainz finished fourth and did not finish at all.

Next race

March 19: The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Grand Prize Jeddah Corniche Circuit.