Max Verstappen cruised to victory at the Bahrain Grand Prix – but Fernando Alonso was the true action hero as Formula 1 returned for a new season.
It was expected that Red Bull would be virtually unchallenged this weekend and that proved to be the case. Verstappen didn't have to break a sweat to win in Bahrain for the first time in his F1 career, while Sergio Perez was a fair way behind but still miles ahead of anyone else.
Charles Leclerc looked set for third but suffered an engine failure with just 17 laps to go. Carlos Sainz was next in line for that final podium spot, but Alonso had other ideas and duly swept past his fellow Spaniard to show there is life in the old dog yet.
The 41-year-old really enjoyed himself behind the wheel of that rapid Aston Martin. The Mercedes cars were no match for it, as both Lewis Hamilton and George Russell were resoundingly beaten by Alonso – while the younger Brit was also passed by Lance Stroll.
Everyone got away safely on the first lap, though there was a nervous moment as Perez started slowly. He was quickly sandwiched by the two Ferraris and, as they bumped along the track down to turn one, Sainz was forced momentarily off the track but was able to get back on without incident.
But there was almost a disaster for the Aston Martins, as Lance Stroll struggled braking into that first corner and tagger his team-mate Alonso. The Spaniard was fortunate not to be spun around, and to not pick up a puncture, though both of them did lose a couple of places.
Hamilton got ahead of Russell at the start, but it wasn't long before the younger Brit was showing better pace. He secured the fastest lap of the race and soon was on the radio asking if Hamilton was struggling and hinting that he should be allowed past as he was quicker.
But, soon after, he was having to look in his mirrors rather than ahead. The Aston Martin was flexing its muscles with Alonso behind the wheel, forcing Russell to focus on defending against the Spaniard who was in no mood to hang around.
What it produced was a brilliant battle over several corners, as Alonso gave everything to get past but the Brit would just not give up on it. Eventually, though, he had to concede with the Aston Martin simply showing much more pace than the Mercedes.
Oscar Piastri's bid to have an F1 debut to remember ended prematurely when he suffered a gearbox problem. McLaren hoped a change of steering wheel would fix the problem but his engine died in the pit box and chief executive Zak Brown confirmed there was an electrical issue on his car, forcing him to retire. Lando Norris was also having his race ruined by an engine problem.
At the front, Verstappen was 10 seconds clear and building on that gap, though not everything was rosy for him. The Dutchman was reporting locking in his rear wheels whenever downshifting, though he did tell his race engineer that the problem was "manageable".
Having less luck was Esteban Ocon. Given a five-second penalty for not being properly placed in his grid box, the Frenchman was then slapped with a 10-second punishment for not properly serving the first one. To add insult to injury, he had a further five seconds added onto his time for speeding in the pit lane – before a 15-second penalty which completely ruined his race.
Leclerc was forced to pull over at the side of the track after his engine failed Carlos Sainz inherited third place but it wasn't long before Alonso was in his wing mirrors and had passed the Ferrari – one Spaniard overtaking another.
From there he only went on to cement that spot, crossing the line almost 10 seconds ahead of Sainz and weaving across the track in celebration as he did so. He was duly voted as Driver of the Day by fans.
Sainz finished fourth ahead of Hamilton, Stroll and then Russell. Valtteri Bottas got his season off to a good start by crossing the line eighth. Pierre Gasly started last but produced an excellent drive to score two points in ninth, while Alex Albon rounded off the top 10 with Williams rookie Logan Sargeant 12th, marking a good day for the team.
Full 2023 F1 Bahrain Grand Prix results
- Max Verstappen – Red Bull
- Sergio Perez – Red Bull
- Fernando Alonso – Aston Martin
- Carlos Sainz – Ferrari
- Lewis Hamilton – Mercedes
- Lance Stroll – Aston Martin
- George Russell – Aston Martin
- Valtteri Bottas – Alfa Romeo
- Pierre Gasly – Alpine
- Alex Albon – Williams
- Yuki Tsunoda – AlphaTauri
- Logan Sargeant – Williams
- Kevin Magnussen – Haas
- Nyck de Vries – AlphaTauri
- Nico Hulkenberg – Haas
- Zhou Guanyu – Alfa Romeo
- Lando Norris – McLaren
DNF: Esteban Ocon, Charles Leclerc, Oscar Piastri
