F1 Pickings

Everything you need to know about the Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix... all the details, stats, pictures and quotes.

Chase Carey reveals plans for a vast motor sport complex in China that will include a number of the world's most iconic race tracks, together with theme parks, hotels and concert venues.

5 live F1's Jolyon Palmer and Jack Nicholls are seriously impressed by Ferrari's Charles Leclerc.

Five of the best images from the Bahrain Grand Prix where Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton claimed victory.

Today's post-race press conference with Lewis Hamilton, Valtteri Bottas and Charles Leclerc.

The German was on course for a top-six finish, after battling through a ‘war zone’ of an opening lap, but was robbed of a strong result when he suffered an engine problem just two laps from home. Moments later, Ricciardo stopped at the same corner with a similar unspecified power unit issue. With Renault left shellshocked by the events, Hulkenberg said he too found it hard to accept that ... Keep reading

On one hand we are elated but on the other are left wondering what could have been.

Sometimes you are lucky, sometimes you are unlucky... it all weighs out in the end.

It was a shame for Charles. He deserved to win and it was only the reliability problem, which we must now investigate, which prevented him from doing so.

It was a solid race for us, with both drivers putting up a good fight.

It feels good to come away with a point from a pretty tough weekend.

Nico Hulkenberg says Renault's late double-retirement from the Bahrain Grand Prix was "brutal", having been on course to finish best of the rest behind Formula 1's top three teams

We ran largely the strategy that we intended, and both cars were able to fight each other quite a lot, particularly in the first stint.

In the race we got our speed back, which means we need to remain positive as the package is good.

It was a very disappointing race, not least with Romain (Grosjean) effectively going out on the first lap.

There was an ample range of strategies: in fact, only two teams ran exactly the same strategies for both their drivers.

Ferrari has revealed Charles Leclerc's loss of power while leading Formula 1’s Bahrain Grand Prix was the result of an engine-cylinder failure and not the MGU-H, as first indicated

Leclerc looked set to take a brilliant win in the Bahrain Grand Prix but his hopes evaporated just over 10 laps from home when he lost power and was reeled in and ultimately passed by Lewis Hamilton. Although radio messages that were played on television suggested he had lost his MGU-H recovery system, Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto has clarified that the issue was solely related to the ... Keep reading

Mercedes Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton said it "felt weird" to pass the hobbled Ferrari of Charles Leclerc for an unlikely victory in the Bahrain Grand Prix

Leclerc looked well on course for a maiden grand prix win as he was managing his gap over Hamilton in the closing stages of the race, only for his Ferrari to develop an MGU-H problem. The Monegasque slowed dramatically and Hamilton made quick work of what was an initial nine-second gap. He could be seen raising his hand as he breezed past the ailing Ferrari on lap 48, before going on to win ... Keep reading

Sebastian Vettel says his Ferrari Formula 1 car was "extremely difficult to drive" in the Bahrain Grand Prix, but accepts blame for his costly spin while fighting Lewis Hamilton

Vettel overtook teammate Charles Leclerc off the line, but could not stay ahead of the Monegasque or keep pace with him afterwards, having to battle Lewis Hamilton for second instead. A spin while fighting Hamilton led to a front wing failure and eventually resulted in Vettel finishing only fifth, which meant he has failed to score a podium in either of the first two races of the season for the ... Keep reading

Ricciardo retired from the Bahrain Grand Prix with just a few laps remaining, reporting that his car had switched off completely as he approached the first corner. He was summoned to the stewards after the race for not leaving his steering wheel in place. However, no further action has been taken, because the stewards heard that Ricciardo did not replace his steering wheel for safety ... Keep reading

Daniel Ricciardo didn't replace his Renault steering wheel because he felt it would be dangerous after being told not to touch his Formula 1 car to "avoid potential electrocution"

Carlos Sainz Jr says his clash with Max Verstappen saved him from a "more dramatic" Bahrain Grand Prix, believing a gearbox problem would have cost him a points finish anyway

Haas driver Romain Grosjean says his 2019 Formula 1 season so far feels like a "copy-paste from last year", after a a second straight retirement in Bahrain

McLaren driver Sainz and Red Bull rival Verstappen made contact at Turn 4 early in the race as the Spaniard attempted to pass the Dutchman for fifth position. The clash resulted in Sainz getting a puncture and needing to pit, as he dropped to the bottom of the field. Verstappen went on to finish in fourth position, and was only stopped from scoring a likely podium by a late safety car that ... Keep reading

Grosjean failed to score in the first eight races of 2018, with a botched pitstop in Australia and lost bodywork in Bahrain kicking off the streak. The 2019 Haas car has largely matched the strong early form of its predecessor, at least over a single lap, but Grosjean has again failed to pick up points in the first two races – as a repeat pitstop issue in Melbourne was followed by a collision ... Keep reading

High emotion in the desert as Lewis Hamilton benefits from Charles Leclerc's heartache, and Sebastian Vettel messes up once again in a race of end to end drama.

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc says his maiden Formula 1 podium was "lucky in a very unlucky situation" after an apparent MGU-H failure cost him victory in the Bahrain Grand Prix

Leclerc suffered a bad opening lap in which he slipped from first to third and only just fended off Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes, before recovering brilliantly to take control of the race.  The 21-year-old held a comfortable lead when he reported an engine problem with 10 laps to go and Ferrari told him he had no energy recovery from the MGU-H.  That meant Leclerc was passed by Hamilton and ... Keep reading

Full result of the Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix.

Lewis Hamilton claimed an unlikely victory in a thrilling Bahrain Grand Prix, as Ferrari's race imploded spectacularly with an engine problem for Charles Leclerc and a spin for Sebastian Vettel

Leclerc recovered from a poor first lap to dominate the race, before an MGU-H failure robbed his engine of power and left him limping to the finish. Hamilton's Mercedes closed rapidly on the ailing Ferrari and claimed the lead on the run to the final corner with just 10 laps to go. Leclerc continued to lose significant pace as the closing stages of the race played out, eventually finishing a ... Keep reading

Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton wins eventful Bahrain Grand Prix as Ferrari's Charles Leclerc loses power in closing stages.

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Lewis Hamilton qualified third in Bahrain, 0.324s shy of Ferrari poleman Charles Leclerc, while Valtteri Bottas was 0.390s off in fourth place.  Hamilton said after the session that Ferrari had a “significant” advantage on the straights, which left Mercedes searching for answers and trying to assess the impact of downforce levels and qualifying power modes. Wolff reckons Mercedes was ... Keep reading

The cause of Ferrari's superiority in Bahrain Grand Prix qualifying appears "very much different" to its pre-season testing pace advantage, reckons Mercedes Formula 1 team boss Toto Wolff

The governing body launched the tender on February 18th, with an initial deadline of March 15th. That was subsequently extended by four extra days to March 19th – in effect the length of the Melbourne race weekend – to give potential bidders extra time. The only bidder to have publicly declared its hand is gearbox specialist Xtrac. It's believed that the other bidders include the ... Keep reading

The FIA has moved to stamp out a Gurney flap trick that could have handed Formula 1 teams a set-up advantage in races, Autosport can reveal

Kubica qualified less than a tenth behind Russell in Bahrain, after being more than 1.7s off in Australia. Kubica said after Friday practice he felt he was driving a "different car" to his teammate in Bahrain, despite the fact they are meant to be identical, and suggested the fact there was less than a tenth between them in Q1 was misleading. "There were a few issues in qualifying which we ... Keep reading

George Russell believes that Patrick Head's return to Grove will lift Williams during one of the worst periods in its history.

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Robert Kubica says the reduced gap between himself and rookie Williams team-mate George Russell in Bahrain qualifying means nothing considering the aerodynamic discrepancy between their Formula 1 cars

Ferrari's to lose? At the more representative Bahrain International Circuit, Ferrari returned to the top of the timing screens as they locked out the front row of the grid, with Charles Leclerc taking his maiden pole position. The gap Ferrari had to Mercedes wasn't as big as the advantage Mercedes had over Ferrari in Melbourne, so it remains to be seen if Leclerc and Vettel will enter into ... Keep reading

The FIA is understood to have received four bids from companies interested in fulfilling the tender to supply a gearbox cassette to all Formula 1 teams for the 2021-'24 seasons

DRS is a controversial topic in Formula 1, with the likes of Max Verstappen calling for a move away from it and Lewis Hamilton labelling it a 'band aid' for poor racing

The Grove outfit confirmed on Friday that co-founder and former technical director Head is providing support to the engineering team as it regroups following the departure of Paddy Lowe. The 72-year-old was last involved on a regular basis in 2011, when he was engineering director. "I think it will be great," said Russell. "He's only coming in as a support role, it's nothing full time, but ... Keep reading

Lando Norris claims Sebastian Vettel "screwed" Romain Grosjean during qualifying, causing the incident that led to the Frenchman's grid penalty.

Haas boss Gunther Steiner has slammed the Bahrain Grand Prix stewards' decision to hand Romain Grosjean a licence penalty point for blocking Lando Norris in qualifying as 'inappropriate' and 'wrong'

With teams working hard to find the sweet spot with the new aero rules for 2019, paddock speculation emerged after Australia that some outfits had found a clever way to better balance the compromise between qualifying and race trim. It was suggested that some competitors were playing around with moving the location of their front wing Gurney flaps – the small vertical flip that is attached to ... Keep reading

After becoming Formula 1's second youngest pole-sitter in history, Ferrari's Charles Leclerc has the best possible change for a maiden series win in the Bahrain Grand Prix

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Ferrari believes that the introduction of a point for fastest lap in Formula 1's could 'make the difference' in the world championship battles this year

Renault's managing director Cyril Abiteboul said at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix that he felt the advance of B-teams could be a threat to some big squads. "It is already a challenge for a team like us who are competing against that top three teams, that have something like 30% more resources than we have," he said. "If they are capable of combining their resources with other ... Keep reading

TRACK INTERVIEWS (Conducted by Paul Di Resta) Q: Charles, it’s your first ever pole position in Formula One, your second grand prix with Ferrari, you’ve looked in control all weekend, and you’ve got the job done. Charles LECLERC: Yeah, I’m extremely happy. Obviously in the last race I was not very happy with my qualifying – I did some mistakes in Q3 – and I really worked hard ... Keep reading

The Russian scrapped his second run in Q2 after the out-lap and was resigned to 15th place on the grid. His absence in the dying seconds of the segment allowed teammate Alexander Albon to leapfrog him in the timesheets, the Anglo-Thai rookie beating Kvyat in qualifying for the second grand prix weekend running. “There was an operational issue,” Kvyat told media about his aborted second ... Keep reading

Today's post-qualifying press conference with Charles Leclerc, Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton.

We need to stay calm and concentrated, as our rivals will be trying to make our life difficult tomorrow.

The Russian scrapped his second run in Q2 after the out-lap and was resigned to 15th place on the grid. His absence in the dying seconds of the segment allowed teammate Alexander Albon to leapfrog him in the timesheets, the Anglo-Thai rookie beating Kvyat in qualifying for the second grand prix weekend running. “There was an operational issue,” Kvyat told media about his aborted second ... Keep reading

Toro Rosso Formula 1 driver Daniil Kvyat was denied a crucial fresh-tyre run in the second segment of Bahrain Grand Prix qualifying by what he described as an "operational issue"

Charles Leclerc's first F1 pole position in just his second race for Ferrari has given the team plenty to think about, writes Andrew Benson.

We start sixth and 11th, and we'll try to do our best in tomorrow's race and make up the positions lost due to the stewards.

It was a very difficult qualifying for us. We have struggled on the C3 tyre all weekend which both drivers found tough to manage in qualifying.

Grosjean had not been alerted over team radio about the fast-approaching Norris, who was on a flying lap, and only saw the McLaren driver in his mirrors at the last second. Although he did all he could to get out of his way, the FIA stewards ruled that Grosjean had impeded Norris, handing him a three-place grid penalty and adding one penalty point. The way that the system works is that ... Keep reading

P3 and P4 is a bit disappointing, but not surprising after the free practice sessions this weekend; we were not fast enough to fight for pole today.

Vettel qualified second on the grid in Bahrain, behind Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc. However, he was due to meet with the stewards at 9.15pm local time for "driving unnecessarily slowly" on an in-lap. This occurred during the first qualifying segment. The stewards want to determine if Vettel breached the sporting regulations and failed to observe and instruction from race director ... Keep reading

So far, it has been a tricky weekend for us.

Sebastian Vettel has been cleared by the Bahrain Grand Prix stewards after being investigated for driving too slowly on an inlap during Formula 1 qualifying

Vettel was summoned to the stewards to review a possible rules breach during the first qualifying segment. The stewards looked at Vettel’s failure to stay below the maximum time between the safety car lines, as required by the race director’s notes ahead of the Bahrain GP. Vettel claimed that the problem was caused by him heavily flat-spotting both front tyres under braking for Turn 1 ... Keep reading

Lando Norris believes getting blocked by Romain Grosjean in Bahrain Grand Prix qualifying was caused by his penalised Formula 1 rival being "screwed over" by Sebastian Vettel

Grosjean picked up a three-place grid penalty, dropping him from eighth to 11th, for impeding Norris during the opening part of qualifying at the Sakhir circuit. The Haas driver was overtaken by Vettel approaching the final corner, which made Grosjean slow down so much to avoid compromising the lap he was about to begin that he got in the way of Norris, who was completing his first flying lap ... Keep reading

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After a strategy mishap in Australia saw him ruled out in Q1, Gasly endured another torrid qualifying in Bahrain, only just escaping elimination in the first segment before qualifying a lowly 14th. The Frenchman had been outside of the top 10 in two of the three Bahrain practice sessions as well, and said his car hadn't felt right all weekend. “I think since the beginning of the weekend ... Keep reading

A number of different strategies are viable options for the race - with all three compounds.

Red Bull Formula 1 driver Pierre Gasly says he was unable to "drive how I want" in Bahrain Grand Prix qualifying as he continued to struggle with an "unpredictable" RB15

Sebastian Vettel's front-row start in the Bahrain Grand Prix could be under threat after he was called to see the Formula 1 stewards after qualifying

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc beats team-mate Sebastian Vettel to take his maiden pole position at the Bahrain Grand Prix.

Grosjean had qualified his Haas eighth for Sunday's race but will drop to 11th after being judged to have blocked Norris in the first qualifying segment. The Bahrain GP stewards have decided Grosjean drove "unnecessarily slowly" and impeded Norris at the final corner. This did not prevent Norris from making it through to the next phase of qualifying, as the McLaren driver ended up reaching ... Keep reading

Romain Grosjean has the dubious honour of incurring the first grid penalty of the season after impeding Lando Norris in qualifying today.

Romain Grosjean has been given a three-place grid penalty for the Bahrain Grand Prix for impeding McLaren driver Lando Norris in Formula 1 qualifying

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Sebastian Vettel says a "hectic" Q2 when Ferrari put him in an "unfortunate slot" on the track compromised his Q3 running in qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix

Sebastian Vettel reckons he and Ferrari Formula 1 team-mate Charles Leclerc "need to work as a team" at the start of Sunday's Bahrain Grand Prix, after qualifying first and second

Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes believe Ferrari's blistering Formula 1 form so far at the Bahrain Grand Prix is the result of a "significant" straightline speed advantage

Leclerc beat his four-time world champion teammate by almost three tenths of a second in qualifying at the Sakhir circuit to claim his maiden pole position in F1. Ferrari suggested pre-season it would favour Vettel in the world championship and issued a team order for its drivers to hold position in fourth and fifth in the final stages of the Australian GP. When asked to clarify the team ... Keep reading

While Hamilton got within 0.030 seconds of Sebastian Vettel’s second-place time in qualifying, he admitted that he had no chance of getting close to Charles Leclerc's pole position performance. Reflecting on why the Ferraris has been in a class of its own this weekend, Hamilton reckoned that much of the Scuderia's advantage can be explained by how fast the Maranello team is on the ... Keep reading

The Woking team got both Sainz and teammate Lando Norris into Q3, the first time it has had both cars in the top 10 shoot-out since 2017. Sainz finished less than a second off pole position and less than a tenth behind the Red Bull of Max Verstappen, who qualified fifth in the first non-Ferrari and non-Mercedes car. The Spaniard said it was impossible to imagine such a result given McLaren's ... Keep reading

Just 23 races into his F1 career, Charles Leclerc becomes the second youngest pole-sitter ever, as Ferrari locks-out Bahrain front row.

Charles Leclerc claimed his first Formula 1 pole position in qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix as Ferrari locked out the front row

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc beats team-mate Sebastian Vettel to take his maiden pole position at the Bahrain Grand Prix.

Full times from today's qualifying session for the Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix.

The 21-year-old put in a dominant performance in Q3, setting two laptimes good enough for pole position. On his first run, Leclerc set a 1m27.958s on soft Pirellis, which gave him the advantage over Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton given Ferrari teammate Sebastian Vettel did not attempt an initial run. Leclerc then went out and improved to a 1m27.866s on his second attempt, which was three ... Keep reading

Customer teams are unlikely to be able to buy brake ducts from other outfits from next year after an agreement to change Formula 1's listed parts rules for 2020

There has been much discussion over recent weeks about whether or not F1 needs a rethink about how much of a car teams should make themselves. Smaller outfits like Haas and Alfa Romeo have benefited from forming customer alliances with Ferrari – with Haas in particular going as far as it can in buying everything available. But the success of that business model has caused concern among ... Keep reading

The meeting, which was originally intended to be a standalone event but in the end was an add-on to the regular drivers’ briefing, was held at the suggestion of FIA president Jean Todt. It was designed to give the drivers a formal opportunity to share their thoughts on driving standards and how penalties should be applied. The 'let them race' philosophy is intended to reduce in penalties ... Keep reading

FIA officials and stewards met with the Formula 1 drivers after Friday practice for the Bahrain Grand Prix to discuss driving standards and when penalties should be applied for infringements

Ferrari dominance in final practice suggests, despite what Mattia Binotto might have us believe, that Friday pace was not merely about engine modes.

Ferrari did its soft-tyre qualifying simulation runs earlier than its main rivals, and having been gradually shuffled back after initially leading the way, Leclerc and Vettel rose back to the top of the timesheet by setting the only laps of the session below 1m30s. Leclerc's 1m29.569s effort was the best of the session, leaving him 0.169s clear of Vettel. Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and ... Keep reading

Ferrari set a scorching pace in final free practice for Formula 1's Bahrain Grand Prix, with Charles Leclerc leading Sebastian Vettel in a Scuderia one-two, seven tenths clear of Mercedes

Full times from the final free practice session for the Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix.

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A second set of start lights will be installed halfway down the Formula 1 grid in a bid to prevent the visibility issues that occurred in Australia

As a result of the higher rear wings that have come as part of the new 2019 aerodynamic rules, a number of drivers at the back of the grid found that their view of the main start lights in Melbourne was blocked. Williams' George Russell revealed that he had to use a window reflection of the lights to be able to work out when the race was starting. "I was looking all around and I ended up ... Keep reading

Ferrari has dismissed suggestions that its form at the Australian Grand Prix was hurt by cooling problems with its Formula 1 car

Russell and his teammate Robert Kubica qualifed on the back row of the grid for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, more than a second slower than the 18th-placed McLaren of Carlos Sainz. They finished last of those who made it to the flag, with Russell lapped twice and Kubica three times, and Russell said ahead of this weekend's Bahrain Grand Prix that he had called upon the team to make ... Keep reading

Toro Rosso boss Franz Tost, dismisses unrest over B-teams, saying rivals should simply do a better job.

F1 teams and the sport's chiefs approved a last-minute change to the regulations for 2019 to award a point for the fastest lap at each race, providing that the driver finished in the top 10. While there was some initial scepticism about the benefits of the new rule, it served to spice up the closing stages in Australia when a number of drivers pushed for the extra point, with race winner ... Keep reading

Bottas, who took a dominant win in Melbourne, has indicated that his mindset is different after a winless 2018 campaign, but Hamilton has played down such suggestions. "I don't think so, he's motivated every year," he said when asked he found Bottas more motivated than previously. "I work with the guy and he's the same guy he was last year. So, no difference for me except he has a ... Keep reading

Red Bull's Max Verstappen thinks Formula 1 should move away from relying on DRS for overtaking moves, with Lewis Hamilton labelling the concept a 'band aid' for poor racing.

Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto is not entirely convincing as he claims progress in post-2020 rules discussions.

The Italian outfit had headed to the Formula 1 season opener as clear favourite after a strong showing in pre-season testing. But it was unable to shine in Melbourne as Mercedes turned the tables to take a surprise 1-2 finish. While there was no immediate explanation as to why Ferrari had failed to deliver in Australia, several theories emerged including that its performance had been ... Keep reading

Edd Straw and Ben Anderson discuss the true picture behind the headline times from free practice, including why Ferrari was so far ahead of Mercedes, and why we should expect things to be much closer when it counts on Saturday in qualifying. We also take a look at a difficult day for Red Bull, and the latest we've heard from Ferrari's management on the theories flying around regarding its ... Keep reading

Fernando Alonso hopes to understand the "limitations" of McLaren's 2019 Formula 1 car next week, even though the team might have "more interest than myself" in him testing in Bahrain

Fernando Alonso insists next week's test, which will see him spend a day and a half in the MCL34, is not a sign that he is considering a return to the F1 grid.

A question to all of you first: you had a meeting with Formula One earlier this week. In the broadest terms can you tell us what was presented and is there a positive way forward regarding 2021? Fréd, if we could start with you please? Frédéric VASSEUR: We can. We tried to cover all the topics of the project. I think that we are doing a good step forward. It’s not an easy one because we ... Keep reading

Ferrari lacked the dominance it had over Red Bull and Mercedes during Formula 1 pre-season testing in the Australian Grand Prix. But is it back in the hunt in Bahrain?

Ferrari team boss suggests that team's dominance in practice sessions was partly down to engine modes.

We can be satisfied with our running today.

We have run some useful tests, with the two cars running slightly different programmes in terms of car setup as we continue to learn how to get the best out of the FW42.

Both drivers have highlighted areas to work on overnight for car balance and we will be aiming to improve through corner consistency for tomorrow.

We need to stay calm in FP3, then work with what we found out in FP2 for qualifying. Overall, not a bad day.

It looks like the issues Ferrari had in Melbourne have been resolved, they look fastest at the moment so we need to work to close that gap.

Looking into our competitiveness, we're in reasonable shape in terms of where we want to be.

Our performance during the evening session suggests we are a bit on the back foot with the car balance so there's plenty of work to do tonight.

After a disappointing season opener in Australia, Ferrari bounced back in Bahrain as Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc comfortably topped the two practice sessions on Friday. But while the SF90's pace looked impressive, team principal Mattia Binotto remains cautious – as he revealed that Ferrari used more powerful engine settings than its rivals. “I think the delta you may see to the ... Keep reading

Daniel Ricciardo admitted he lacks confidence in his Renault Formula 1 car after finishing Bahrain Grand Prix Friday practice 1.2 seconds and 10 places behind his team-mate Nico Hulkenberg

Mercedes Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton says Ferrari's strong performance has made Bahrain Grand Prix practice "completely different" to the season opener in Australia

Robert Kubica says he is driving a "completely different car" compared to Williams Formula 1 team-mate George Russell, despite them running ostensibly identical set-ups

Kubica, who was a second slower than Russell in FP2, was at a loss to understand why the data indicated that the cars have different aerodynamic characteristics. Crucially he has ruled out floor damage, after that was believed to have cost him performance in Melbourne. "At least we understood that in Australia I ran a different set-up than George and we could clearly see the different ... Keep reading

Ferrari finished off the podium and almost a minute adrift of Hamilton’s race-winning teammate Valtteri Bottas in Melbourne, having led the way in pre-season testing. However, Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc dominated Friday practice in Bahrain, while Mercedes finished more than half a second off the pace. Hamilton said: “The Ferraris have been quick from the get-go and picked up ... Keep reading