With the 2024 Formula 1 season finally underway, there was a familiar face atop the podium as Max Verstappen claimed a dominant victory in Bahrain to begin his title defence.
With Red Bull adding another 1-2 finish to its ever-growing list of achievements, rivals will need to step up their game heading into next weekend’s Saudi Arabia Grand Prix.
But with that said, how did the 20-car field fare under the floodlights?
Max Verstappen: 10
Qualified: P1, Race: P1
Victory by over 20 seconds was the perfect way to launch a title defence, however, it wasn’t plain sailing from the outset for reigning champion Max Verstappen.
It took until qualifying for the Dutchman to finally feel at home in the RB20 where he was able to steal pole position away from a rapid Charles Leclerc.
Verstappen was a cut above the rest in the opening race. Leclerc could only do so much as contemplate a move at Turn 1, allowing the Red Bull driver to stretch his legs and build a gap.
Once he broke free of DRS range, Verstappen cantered to victory and held a 20-plus second advantage to his team-mate at the flag. A perfect display and warning message to all on the grid.
Sergio Perez: 7.5
Qualified: P5, Race: P2
The 2023 comparisons extend to the other side of the Red Bull garage as Sergio Perez was forced to deliver a recovery drive on Saturday after a disappointing qualifying showing.
It was clear that Perez wouldn’t prove a threat to the reigning champion, however, the Mexican driver was able to smartly recover the ground lost on Friday.
He carved his way past both Ferraris and the Mercedes of George Russell before displaying the supreme tyre management of the RB20 with a final stint on the softs.
All in all, it was a solid start to the year for Perez although he must rectify his qualifying shortcomings if he hopes to take that next step.
Carlos Sainz: 9
Qualified: P4, Race: P3
The news that 2024 will be Carlos Sainz’s last year at Maranello came as a shock over the winter, but the Spaniard was able to brush that off to put on a fantastic performance in Bahrain.
The Ferrari had the pace for pole on Friday, meaning fourth on the grid was a slight disappointment. So too was losing out to Sergio Perez on the run to Turn 1.
But Sainz was precise and calculated in his charge to the podium as he twice picked off team-mate Leclerc and executed a fantastic overtake on George Russell.
He didn’t quite have the pace to split the Red Bull’s at the flag, but Sainz certainly garnered attention for all the right reasons at Sakhir.
Charles Leclerc: 7.5
Qualified: P2, Race: P4
Leclerc was perhaps the favourite to come away with pole position in Bahrain, but a mistake on his final Q3 effort saw him second best to eventual race winner Verstappen.
In the race, Leclerc slid down the order as a brake temperature offset eroded all hopes of battling the Red Bulls.
Instead, Leclerc’s real battle lay with his Ferrari as he locked up and left the circuit numerous times, but the overall pace was still good enough to usurp Russell who himself was also facing issues.
George Russell: 8
Qualified: P3, Race: P5
It’s no real surprise that George Russell was unable to improve on his third-place starting spot having extracted close to the maximum the Mercedes could offer in one-lap pace.
From the get-go, Russell was feisty and brilliantly swept around the outside of Leclerc on Lap 3 at Turn 4 to run second for a stretch.
Overheating issues later in the race slowed the Briton’s progress before losing out to Leclerc in the closing stages once the grip faded.
Russell deserved more than fifth for his efforts, but it was a very strong first weekend for the Silver Arrow’s new de facto lead driver.
Lewis Hamilton: 7
Qualified: P9, Race: P7
Lewis Hamilton appeared to struggle to get to grips with the Mercedes W15 in Bahrain, but perhaps his afternoon was more indicative of the strides taken by the manufacturer’s rivals.
Hamilton entered qualifying much more confident in the W15 than it’s predecessor but underachieved after a costly moment at Turn 4.
Like his team-mate, Hamilton faced cooling issues during the race and was unable to truly challenge the McLaren’s but was able to jump Oscar Piastri in the pit cycle.
Lando Norris: 7.5
Qualified: P7, Race: P6
Bahrain has traditionally been a troublesome track for McLaren, but both Norris and Piastri were able to advance into Q3 on Friday.
Norris was swift to pass Fernando Alonso during the race, allowing Piastri to follow suit just one lap later.
Ultimately there was not much more Norris could have done to improve his result as McLaren were powerless against the likes of Ferrari and Russell.
However, if you consider where the Papaya squad sat this time last year, the MCL38 is a marked improvement on its predecessor.
Oscar Piastri: 7
Qualified: P8, Race: P8
Oscar Piastri was disappointed to maintain his starting position at the line in Sakhir, however the Australian always looked unlikely to better Norris’ endeavours.
Piastri followed Norris until the halfway point when McLaren allowed the Mercedes of Hamilton to undercut the youngster.
His tyre management was far stronger than it was in 2023 which bodes well for the long season ahead of us, although McLaren may need to wait for a more suitable venue before it can exploit that.
Fernando Alonso: 7
Qualified: P6, Race: P9
A return to Bahrain failed to yield the fairytale performance for Aston Martin as it did last year, but the Silverstone-based team will be pleased to see two cars in the top ten.
In typical Alonso fashion, the Spaniard was exquisite in qualifying and had expected to fall down the order to a more representative result for the marque.
He was passed quickly by both McLarens and was also unable to hold off Hamilton. The team had hoped a Safety Car would transform its fortunes, but that never came as Alonso had to settle for two championship points.
Lance Stroll: 7.5
Qualified: P12, Race: P10
A top-ten result was likely the goal for Stroll who started the race from 12th. That task was made much more challenging when he was pitched into a spin at Turn 1 after contact from behind by Nico Hulkenberg.
From the back of the field, Stroll plugged away throughout the race distance and utilised effective undercuts to vault his way back up the order.
The Aston Martin may comfortably be the fifth fastest car on the grid as it stands, but the Canadian did very well to recover his evening in fine manner.
Guanyu Zhou: 8
Qualified: P17, Race: P11
Sauber struggled to get up to speed in Bahrain which duly saw Zhou and Valtteri Bottas dumped from qualifying at the first time of asking.
But come the race, it was a very different story for Zhou who gained four places on the opening lap.
The Chinese driver pitted early to ditch the Softs before embarking on longer stints with the Hard tyre. Running out of sync saw him break into the top ten momentarily, but unsurprisingly, he was unable to hold back the recovering Aston Martins for long.
P11 was the maximum Zhou could have expected from Bahrain, and a much better performance than many had predicted.
Valtteri Bottas: 5
Qualified: P16, Race: P19
Valtteri Bottas’ Bahrain Grand Prix weekend was a stark contrast to that of his team-mate.
The Finn narrowly bested Zhou in qualifying but got himself caught up in a first corner tangle with Hulkenberg and Stroll.
He carried front wing damage for the remainder of the race and a wheel nut issue in the pits saw his evening come undone with a 50-second stop.
Kevin Magnussen: 7
Qualified: P15, Race: P12
Kevin Magnussen may not have had the one-lap pace to match his team-mate, but thankfully for the Dane, Haas appear to have a much better race car than 2023.
The VF-24 did not chew through its rubber in the same fashion as the previous challenger. Magnussen’s consistency was therefore rewarded with a 12th-place finish which will add optimism for further developments.
Nico Hulkenberg: 6
Qualified: P10, Race: P16
As had often been the case in 2023, Nico Hulkenberg managed to drag his Haas into Q3 and secure himself a tenth place starting spot on Saturday.
Unfortunately, a tangle with Stroll and Bottas on Lap 1 forced an early pit stop and stole an opportunity to see how the Haas compared in relation to the likes of Aston Martin.
Still, Hulkenberg recovered to P16 which bodes well for upcoming race weekends.
Daniel Ricciardo: 6
Qualified: P14, Race: P13
Many had expected RB to make a sizeable leap up the pecking order over the winter break, but instead, the Bahrain Grand Prix exposed some early teething problems for the Faenza-based outfit.
Ricciardo was out-performed by Yuki Tsunoda for much of the opening weekend but found himself with fresher, faster rubber in the closing stages of the race.
Ricciardo’s appeal for team orders was heeded by the team but met frostily by Tsunoda. Even with a significant tyre advantage, the Australian was unable to pass Magnussen for 12th.
Yuki Tsunoda: 6
Qualified: P11, Race: P14
Tsunoda missed out on a Q3 appearance by just 0.003s after making a mistake at the bottom of the hill at Turn 8.In the race, he was able to make the most of his advantage over Ricciardo, although twice lost out in the pit cycle to those undercutting.
Tensions flared when he was instructed to allow his team-mate by late in the race, but while his frustration was understandable, his response was damaging.
The RB pair came close to a collision on the cool-down lap as Tsunoda displayed his anger. There are high stakes on offer for the leading RB driver at the end of the year, but both drivers must aid in the restructuring and rebuilding of the stable.
Alex Albon: 6.5
Qualified: P13, Race: P15
Alex Albon fell backwards in Bahrain which was to be expected for the Williams.
Despite Albon’s best efforts, the car struggled with overheating in the desert which contributed to falling behind Magnussen and Ricciardo.
Logan Sargeant: 5
Qualified: P18, Race: P20
Sargeant was already on the backfoot against his team-mate, but his struggles in Bahrain were exaggerated by the Williams’ seemingly characteristic overheating issues.
An electronics issue on Lap 10 threw his race out the window when his brake balance was thrust forward. The result was a lengthy stop and a change of steering wheel.
Poor luck and a general lack of performance make for a shaky start to the season for the American.
Esteban Ocon: 5.5
Qualified: P19, Race: P17
It looks set to be an agonisingly long season ahead for Alpine as the factory team were sentenced to the backrow in qualifying.
Ocon held the pace advantage over Gasly, and also benefited in strategy, however a sizeable deficit to the remainder of the field reduced the race to a testing session.
Pierre Gasly: 5.5
Qualified: P20, Race: P18
It was a similar story for compatriot Pierre Gasly who was unable to get his tyres in the right window in qualifying, meaning a last-place start was virtually unavoidable.
Misfortune for Bottas and Sargeant saw Gasly profit, but not even a three-stop strategy would salvage a meaningful result.
Alpine are left with a massive task to turn around their fortunes in 2024 with the A524 underpowered, overweight and off the mark.
