2021 Bahrain Grand Prix Race Thread

How many DNFs are we looking at this time around?

Are you kidding me? Why on earth isn't ESPN broadcasting F1???

Bradley King said:How many DNFs do you think we might see?

Oh, quite a few, I suspect! If we consider how things go with Nikita Mazepin, I’d say we can almost certainly expect at least one SC during the race.

I think we’re being way too hard on Sebastian Vettel here. The whole situation was pure chaos, especially with those two yellow flags popping up so close together because of Carlos Sainz and Nikita Mazepin. At the end of the day, he’s starting practically from the back of the pack anyway—he didn't gain any ground and he wasn't even threatening anyone. On one hand, there are much bigger problems to worry about, and now this tiny little hiccup right at the start of the season is being blown out of proportion just to make a point. 🤷

> I’ve spent two days straight defending Sebastian Vettel.

Richard Walker38 said:edit: I've been defending Sebastian Vettel for two days straight now.

🤣

I guess this feels a bit like someone just kicking dirt on the floor... but hey, maybe he can use it as a little lesson in Stoicism.😬

He got slapped with a penalty because he clearly saw Mazepin spinning out and just sitting there on the track, yet he didn't lift off the gas. Sebastian Vettel is out here trying to claim he couldn't tell if it was just a lockup or if Mazepin had actually spun, so he didn't react fast enough. Whatever. He definitely saw things were going south, and the stewards decided his excuses just didn't hold water.

wiredfalcon2 said:

Great breakdown. It really clears up the main points.

Kazoo Russell mentioned in his statement that we’re looking at temperatures between 50 and 54 degrees today, with winds hitting 50 mph.

Richard Walker38 said:Kazoo Russell mentioned in a statement that temperatures are sitting around 50 degrees today with winds hitting 50 mph.

Natalie Pinkham's dress was fluttering nicely in the breeze, though I have my doubts about the wind being quite that intense. 😁

They did such a beautiful job with the "We Race As One" section. 🙏

I mean, just imagine if Max goes ahead and leaves Lewis in the dust.

http://freestreams-live1.com/espn2-stream/

here's the stream

darkmarlin16 said:BREAKING NEWS

Sebastian Vettel has been slapped with a 5-place grid penalty and 3 penalty points for failing to respect those yellow flags during Q1.

It's all good—he might as well just keep charging ahead.👍😁🤦

Jason Campbell70 said:Great breakdown. It really clears up the biggest questions.

I think Mercedes-Benz has the right talent on hand to close that gap if they find themselves even a second behind last year's pace. I’m less certain about Aston Martin.
It’s possible Sebastian Vettel is feeling some pressure regarding his move to AM.

Raymond Anderson4 said:I feel like Mercedes-Benz actually has the technical depth to close the gap if they fall even a fraction of a second behind last year's pace, but I’m really not so sure about Aston Martin.
It’s possible Sebastian Vettel might have made a bit of a blunder with that move to AM.

But honestly, which top-tier team would actually be interested in signing him right now?

Look at Lewis Hamilton testing out that grip during the formation lap—he just bolted straight ahead! 🤣

It seems like F1TV is lagging about 45 seconds behind the live TV broadcast.

Sergio Perez's car is 🤣

Raymond Anderson4 said:Regarding Mercedes-Benz, I believe they have the talent to close any gap if they fall behind last year's pace by even a second. For Aston Martin? I'm less certain.

The real bottleneck is the Mercedes-Benz power unit.
It seems to lack punch in certain operating modes. Given those gearbox issues during pre-season testing, perhaps they've intentionally dialed back the power? It's possible even the folks at Mercedes-Benz aren't entirely sure how much they can push the engine without compromising longevity. With drivers only getting three per season this year, they’re likely playing it safe.

Mercedes-Benz will solve this quickly—which benefits everyone running their engines—and let's face it, they simply have more resources to fine-tune the aero package.

Things are off to a promising start. 🤣