Exciting race icing on the cake

The over-riding non-racing memory of thosein the pit lane of the 2012 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix, among those fortunateenough to have witnessed it, will be of the passionate and spontaneouscelebrations of the kingdom’s F1 fans and marshalls, representing the majorityof Bahrain’s residents.

The noisy celebrations completelyvindicated the decision of F1’s executives and Bahrain’s Royal Family to hostan event, which, once attention had focused on the asphalt, turned into one ofthe most exciting races in living memory.

It’s true that this is a race that raisedmore questions than it provided answers – but of a purely sporting nature. 

Is Sebastian Vettel now set to dominate ashe did for much of last season? Which Mercedes will appear in Spain – thedominant force from China or the one that struggled in Bahrain? Will McLarenresolve their pit problems and find the right balance to compliment what isconsidered to be the most complete package? Can Ferrari improve in general andhow will Massa respond to the media pressure to have him replaced by Perez?

As Vettel crossed the finish line the 2012season became the first since 2003 to witness a different winner in each of thefirst four races of the season. Three of those were present in Bahrain,although one, David Coulthard, was behind the microphone rather than the steeringwheel. The others, Michael Schumacher and Kimi Raikkonen, proved that Bahraincould be the best place to mount a comeback, albeit with differing results.

Having failed to perform in qualifying dueto a faulty DRS, the Mercedes decision to replace Schumi’s gearbox and concedefurther grid position, was vindicated as he carved his way through the field,powering from 22nd position to secure a point when finishing 10th.

Raikkonen was on fire as his F1 Phoenixrose through the placings, only missing out on the top podium position afterfailing to find a way past the dominant Vettel, for whom Bahrain also brought areturn to form.

Each benefitted from clever race plans asBahrain’s fluctuating weather conditions made for an intriguingly strategicweekend. Despite warm weather in practice and qualifying, a light rain showerat lunch time sent teams from a state of calm into frenzied action.

Even a drop in temperature of a couple ofdegrees can have a major impact on tyre pressure and the rate of degradation, particularlyon the softer compounds. The track temperature of 34C and ambient temperatureof 28C was way below those on which the teams had rehearsed, rendering much oftheir gathered data questionable.

This also impacted on planned strategiesand teams could be seen trying to glean whatever information they could. Therewas even a debate as to whether the dark skies were clouds or smoke.

The rain even brought with it a heavyloading of dust particles resulting in further benefit from starting on theleft ‘clean’ side of the grid. A reminder, if one was needed, of the finemargins on which victory can be achieved.

Teams had arrived in Bahrain, the last offour ‘fly-away’ races, with the same bodywork and chassis they had taken toAustralia, meaning they were already starting with damage to the floor, dentsand coloured masking tape holding pieces together.

Discussion early in the race weekend hadcentred on Sahara Force India’s well-publicised encounter with a molotovcocktail, with some members of the team admitting it had been blown out of allproportion. One private theory from the pit lane ventured that it was simply anattempt to generate column inches, although when your expectations prior toarrival have been formed around myopic and sensationalistic journalism, panicbeing the first reaction is, perhaps, understandable.

This led to a bizarre chain of eventswhereby the Sahara Force India team returned to their hotel before dark,missing the second practice session. In turn, their cars were not shown ontelevision in final practice with one reason cited as being their carrying analcoholic beverage as a sponsor.

However, while initial concern spread, thisquickly gave way to a range of jokes, with some musing that perhaps SaharaForce India would only compete in the race until the first pit stop beforepacking up and returning home, while others wondered aloud whether they hadplaced an extra guard on their tyres. One wag also suggested that, if the logowas a problem, the team could now seek sponsorship from Horlicks!

What was clear was that different membersof the whole Sakhir team had wide-ranging experiences from the weekend. Whilethe communications department had one of the worst few days imaginable, most ofthe mechanics and engineers were more than happy.

Strategically, the decision to run Paul DiResta on a two-stop race helped him to his best finish of the year while oneengineer suggested that, in an industry where the pressure to succeed isimmense and work curfews have to be enforced, achieving such a result despitehaving Friday afternoon off (traditionally the longest due to new Parc Fermerestrictions) might not be such a bad thing.

In the pit lane, two rules came underscrutiny in Bahrain. One related to the unsafe release of cars from a pit-stopwith several incidents, the most notable of which was young Mexican hotshot,Sergio Perez, as he emerged side-by-side with Schumacher as they battled forthe final point, where he remained until finally conceding position to theruthless German at the pit lane exit.

The other was Article 10.4 of the SportingRegulations, which govern defensive manoeuvres and ‘crowding’. There werequestions why judgments could not be made during the race itself, leaving theresult (but not podium) in doubt until half-an-hour after the race hadfinished.

Lewis Hamilton was certainly unhappy withRaikkonen’s pass although the main talking point was Nico Rosberg who forcedFernando Alonso so wide that the Mercedes itself was also in the sand.  Schumacher may use this in his defenceafter having been advised by his crew that Rosberg was taking a better lineinto the first turn than he was.

Pit-stops were also high-profile withMcLaren closing ranks around their left rear-wheel mechanic who had to be‘benched’ following his second mistake in successive races with the managementpromising to review the procedures involved rather than focusing on individualerror. However, they were not the only team to suffer from bolts sticking orcross-threads delaying changes.

While Ferrari were not happy with theirresults, they were pleased that the drivers’ and constructors’ championshipsremain close. However, this was all put into perspective by the tragic newsconcerning the death of their gearbox mechanic, Matteo Vignali.

Lotus, of course, were delighted with theirdouble-podium finish. As their drivers sprayed the fizzy rosewater around,their mechanics reflected that the fans now know they have cars that cancompete for the top prizes. They could be the surprise team to watch out for inSpain in three weeks’ time.

Yet, the weekend belonged, in the end, toVettel whose 22nd win takes him to 11th in the overall standings. Remarkably,half of his wins have now come in Asia.

This F1 race has proven to the world andthe teams that the general protests are unrepresentative of the generalpopulation of Bahrain.  Indeed, onepit lane wag even asked whether protestors would now be issued with soft andhard options of tyres and only allocated a certain number for each weekend.