Aston Martin, who was in the pole position battle, was far behind in the end, but was better than Mercedes. Valtteri Bottas stayed in the second section in the first qualifying session of the season.
Red Bull didn’t let others be surprised when Max Verstappen took pole position in the F1 season opener in Bahrain. The pole position is the 21st of Verstappen’s career.
– The beginning of the weekend has been difficult and I haven’t really found a rhythm. I’m really happy with the pole position. We have a strong car. I’m looking forward to tomorrow, Verstappen stated in the interview.
Verstappen was his teammate Sergio Perez more than ten times faster. The third had celebrated the pole in Bahrain last season Charles Leclerc (+ 0.292) and fourth Carlos Sainz.
The first two sections of qualifying were very tight. In the opening section, the 15 best drivers fit within more than six tenths. In the second section, the difference between the fastest and the ninth was also a good six tenths.
– Qualifying was really tight, I don’t remember such a tight struggle in qualifying in the first two sections. I wasn’t completely happy with the balance, but for the team this kind of start is special, Perez stated.
– We were involved in the battle for pole position, which is a good thing. We were slightly behind Red Bull in the race pace, Leclerc, on the other hand, expressed his feelings.
Bottas expected more
Alfa Romeo Valtteri Bottas couldn’t repeat his performance at the beginning of last season, instead he stayed with his teammate Guanyu Zhou ways to another section.
Bottas was 12th and 1.1 seconds behind the fastest of the second section, Leclerc. A time more than three tenths faster would have been required for the last section.
The Finn admitted that he expected more, i.e. a place in the top ten. However, the difference to the tenth place was too much.
– You can’t catch it by driving. I expected more, but it’s smooth. Tomorrow is a new day and we will see how the race pace is enough, Bottas stated on Viaplay.
Bottas has previously spoken with relative confidence about the car’s performance. According to him, the car had no problems during qualifying.
The Finn thought that the qualifying sessions were even, as all the teams had found good adjustments during last weekend’s winter tests. He is looking forward to seeing how the race pace will look on Sunday.
– There are a lot of question marks. Exercises and tests do not give a complete picture Tomorrow we will be much wiser.
Alonso washed the Mercedes
Aston Martin Fernando Alonso was even asked to fight for the pole position, but the Spaniard ended up fifth, missing more than six tenths of the top. The Spaniard left Mercedes behind, among others of George Russell and Lewis Hamilton.
However, Aston Martin has taken huge development steps compared to last season’s opening race, when it was left in the opening section of qualifying.
Bahrain Qualifying Results:
1. Max Verstappen Red Bull 1.29.708
2. Sergio Perez Red Bull 1.29.846
3. Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1.30,000
4. Carlos Sainz Jr. Ferrari 1.30.154
5. Fernando Alonso Aston Mon 1.30.336
6. George Russell Mercedes 1.30.340
7. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1.30.384
8. Lance Stroll Aston Ma 1.30.836
9. Esteban Ocon BWT Alpi 1.30.984
10. Nico Hulkenberg Haas 1.30.809
…
12. Valtteri Bottas Alfa Romeo