The Bahrain GP – the track, the tests and a prediction
F1 has just under a week to go until the first winner of 2010 will lift the trophy. It all starts in the Kingdom of Bahrain at the Sakhir circuit. It’s been on the calendar since 2004 and has provided some good racing, it stays in it’s position of the first race from last year having deposed the Australian GP.
This year the drivers will run on the full length circuit compared to the Grand Prix circuit. This change takes that circuit from 5.412 km to 6.299 km and adds a twisty in field section after turn 4, the drivers will run 49 laps for a total race distance of 308.651 km. It will be the first few miles of running in anger for the new teams and the new drivers to F1, lets hope that they can all keep it together for those first few corners.The first corner is tight at Bahrain but it’s not the tightest of the season, I’d expect nothing major but there are a lot of unknowns this year with all the new cars.
Testing on a damp track in Spain will have little bearing on the tyre performance at a circuit that will be bathed in sunshine for the race, they will have to content with a sandy track rather than a damp one and so it will be a challenge to setup the new cars for the race, it will be interesting to see who plays it safe tyre and fuel wise and who – if anyone – gets it wrong.
A prediction? Well I think that it would be a brave man who bet against Fernando Alonso taking his maiden victory for Ferrari – in fact if you look back last year was the first year that a Ferrari or Alonso didn’t win the race.
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