From the setbacks of Ferrari with the abandonment of Leclerc to the return to the podium of Fernando Alonso: the pearls of Formula 1 in Bahrain

The start of the 2023 season Formula 1 had the crushing triumph of Red Bull with the victory of Max Verstappen and the 1-2 he finished Sergio Checo Perez. But there were two important edges which were a further disappointment for Ferrari and the remarkable work of Fernando Alonsowho at 41 is very current and has made it to the podium thanks to good handling and a very competitive Aston Martin.

In the first part of the race behind the two Red Bull cars, several fought for the top positions and among them were the Ferraris of Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, the Mercedes Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.

But Leclerc managed to come between the two Red Bulls and at some point another chapter in his duel with Verstappen, whom he has known since his karting days, was expected. But that didn’t happen due to the pace imposed by the Austrian house’s single-posters due to their good set-up that allowed them impeccable tire management. Their first stop was on the soft compound (the one that degrades the fastest), but they were able to stay ahead and even due to previous stops by their rivals, Pérez reclaimed second position.

Leclerc was third and given the supremacy of Red Bull the objective was to be able to take the podium. But on the 41st lap, Leclerc was left out due to a mechanical breakdown. The initial sound was a loss of power and his engine stalled. It was a big disappointment for the Scuderia and in the pits the face of Piero Ferrari, one of the Commendatore’s sons, said it all. Same angry face from the new team leader, Frédéric Vasseur.

This time it was not about strategic errors but rather about a lack of performance of the car, unlike the beginning of 2022 where Leclerc himself started with a victory and demonstrated the potential of the Maranello engine, this which even allowed him to do a good job at this level. time to Kevin Magnussen with the Alfa Romeo.

Sainz also lost momentum and, given Leclerc’s retirement, became an incentive for The Red. However, the Spaniard’s SF-23 lost performance and fellow countryman Alonso approached him. He managed to reduce the difference to less than a second and was able to use DRS, the system that moves the rear wing and allows better air intake and more speed to the car behind.

At turn 46 there was no difference between the Iberians and Alonso passed Sainz. “It’s a very fun car to drive.“, told on the radio the double world champion 2005/2006 who was chosen as “Driver of the Day” by the public in the choice made by the F1 page and social networks. He was able to finish third and confirmed Aston Martin’s lead as he was first in two practice sessions, second in the other, fifth in qualifying in Bahrain.

At the start of the race, Alonso suffered a touch from his teammate, Lance Stroll, but although it disturbed him and he fired on the radio”Can’t do that“, then he congratulated the Canadian who was in doubt until the last moment since he had surgery for an injury following a bicycle accident and missed pre-season tests. “I congratulate Lance Stroll because despite his operation he was able to finish fifth. To finish on the podium is incredible,” Alonso said after the race in his notes. Nico Rosberg, F1 world champion in 2016. “I had a little more adrenaline to recover places. The team. I hope to be able to catch up with Max next year.”

Alonso had not been on a podium since the 2021 Qatar Grand Prix when he was third with the Alpine. This year he has started to get excited and the Asturian wants more.

Continue reading: