Red Bull have taken the last two Bahrain Grand Prix victories, while Mercedes won six of the previous ten races at the track. Here’s everything you need to know about each team’s history at the Bahrain Grand Prix!
RED BULL
WINS: 4, POLES: 5, PODIUMS: 10 | 2024 BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX RESULT: VERSTAPPEN 1st, PEREZ 2nd
In 2023, Max Verstappen gave Red Bull their first Bahrain Grand Prix victory since 2013. The team have finished 1st and 2nd here in each of the last two seasons, with Verstappen winning by the biggest margin ever seen at the track in 2024.
Sebastian Vettel is the only Red Bull driver other than Verstappen to have won at Bahrain International Circuit, doing so in 2012 and 2013. Until 2020, Vettel was also Red Bull’s only podium finisher in Bahrain.
Verstappen and Alex Albon both finished in the top three in the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix, while further podiums followed for Verstappen and Sergio Perez, who secured Red Bull’s first 1-2 finish at the venue in 2023 and repeated the feat in 2024.
Red Bull have recorded six retirements in the last nine Bahrain races, including disappointing double DNFs in both 2018 and 2022. Aside from those two years, 2008 – when both David Coulthard and Mark Webber failed to finish – is the only other time that the team has left the track without picking up any points.
Red Bull have taken five pole positions at the Bahrain Grand Prix: two for Sebastian Vettel in 2010 and 2012 and three for Max Verstappen in 2021, 2023 and 2024. In 2021, Verstappen recorded Red Bull’s first front row start in Bahrain since 2013. In 2023, he and Sergio Perez recorded Red Bull’s first front row lock-out at the Bahrain Grand Prix.
In the past 12 races at the track, there have been only five occasions on which both of the team’s drivers have qualified inside the top ten. Most recently, Perez was eliminated in Q2 on his Red Bull debut in 2021. 2008 is the only time neither of the team’s drivers have reached the final part of qualifying in Bahrain.
MERCEDES
WINS: 6, POLES: 7, PODIUMS: 16 | 2024 BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX RESULT: RUSSELL 6th, HAMILTON 7th
Mercedes have won six of the last 12 races held at Bahrain International Circuit. They finished on the podium with both cars at the Bahrain Grand Prix in every season between 2014 and 2019. That included with three consecutive wins in 2014, 2015 and 2016 and 1-2 finishes in 2014 and 2019.
The 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix marked only the second race at the track since 2014 in which neither Mercedes driver appeared on the podium. The other was the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix, held on the shorter Outer Circuit, in which a pit stop error by the team left both drivers off the podium with Valtteri Bottas eighth and George Russell – who replaced Lewis Hamilton following a positive coronavirus test – ninth. That remains the team’s lowest points-scoring race at the venue.
Mercedes returned to form at the circuit in 2021, with Hamilton taking the season-opening win and Bottas finishing in third place. In 2022, late race retirements for both Red Bull drivers saw Hamilton take a podium finish and Russell finish fourth. In 2023, Hamilton finished fifth, with Russell seventh. The team recorded the same result again in 2024, albeit with their drivers inverted.
Since their rebrand as Mercedes in 2010, the Brackley team has a 100% finish rate at the Bahrain Grand Prix, with both cars scoring in every race at the track. Michael Schumacher’s tenth place in 2012 is Mercedes’ worst finish here. They have scored more points in Bahrain than any other team.
Mercedes took five poles in a row at the Bahrain Grand Prix between 2013 and 2017, locking out the front row twice during that time. In both 2018 and 2019, Hamilton and Bottas locked out the second row of the grid, before both cars qualified on the front row at both the 2020 Bahrain and Sakhir Grands Prix.
Since then, Hamilton’s second place in 2021 has been the team’s only front row start at the Bahrain Grand Prix. Russell’s third place in qualifying for the 2024 Bahrain Grand Prix is the only time in the last three years that the team has started from the front two rows of the grid.
Michael Schumacher recorded the team’s worst qualifying performance in Bahrain in 2012, with 18th on the grid. It remains the only time a Mercedes car hasn’t qualified in the top ten in Bahrain and the only time one of their cars hasn’t reached the final part of qualifying here.
FERRARI
WINS: 6, POLES: 6, PODIUMS: 17 | 2024 BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX RESULT: SAINZ 3rd, LECLERC 4th
Ferrari recorded a 1-2 finish at the 2022 Bahrain Grand Prix, with Charles Leclerc securing the team’s seventh victory at the Bahrain Grand Prix. Ferrari have more wins than any other team at Bahrain International Circuit. 2022 marked the team’s fourth 1-2 at the circuit, after 2004, 2008 and 2010.
2022 was an exception to a disappointing recent run of form at the Bahrain Grand Prix for Ferrari. Leclerc looked set for a maiden win with the Scuderia here in 2019, before late race engine issues relegated him to third. The 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix marked the first time since 2014 that neither Ferrari driver finished on the podium, while the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix marked the first time that the team failed to score at the circuit since 2005. In 2023, Leclerc recording a retirement late on in the race while running in a podium position. Carlos Sainz finished fourth.
2024 saw both Sainz and Leclerc finish in the top four, with Sainz finishing third – and Ferrari re-taking the honour of being the team with the most podium finishes at the track.
The Italian team have failed to finish the race here on only five occasions: Michael Schumacher had hydraulic issues in 2005, Kimi Raikkonen had pit-stop problems in 2018, Sebastian Vettel failed to start the race in 2016 due to an engine failure on the formation lap and Charles Leclerc was eliminated in a first lap crash at the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix before retiring with engine issues in 2023.
Charles Leclerc took Ferrari’s sixth pole at the Bahrain Grand Prix in 2022. The team has secured four front row lockouts here; their latest being in 2019. 11 races in the Sakhir desert have featured at least one Ferrari on the front row.
Until 2020, there were just two occasions that one of their cars qualified outside of the top ten: Felipe Massa’s Q2 exit was the only occasion that a Ferrari driver had failed to reach Q3 at the circuit, while Rubens Barrichello’s 15th place in 2005 was the team’s only other non top ten qualification at the track.
At the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix, neither driver progressed to Q3, while Sebastian Vettel was eliminated in Q2 at the Sakhir Grand Prix. The team is yet to record a Q1 elimination at the venue.
McLAREN
WINS: 0, POLES: 0, PODIUMS: 4 | 2024 BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX RESULT: NORRIS 6th, PIASTRI 8th
McLaren have never won nor taken pole position at the Bahrain Grand Prix and have led only eight laps in the Sakhir desert. Their best finishing position here came in 2007, when Lewis Hamilton finished as runner-up, while their most recent top three finish here also came courtesy of Hamilton in 2010.
There have been six races at the track where McLaren have failed to score, including in both 2022 and 2023. Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri finished sixth and eighth in the 2024 Bahrain Grand Prix – the team’s first points-scoring race at the track since 2021.
2004 and 2014 are the only times neither McLaren car has reached the end of the race in Sakhir.
Between 2014 and 2017, McLaren scored just one point at the Bahrain Grand Prix, thanks to Stoffel Vandoorne’s tenth place finish on his debut in 2016.
McLaren’s form at the track took an upward turn in 2018, as Fernando Alonso and Vandoorne finished seventh and eighth respectively. In the five races at the circuit before 2022, Carlos Sainz’s retirement in 2019 was the only time that a McLaren driver failed to score. The team finished fourth in all three races at the venue in 2020 and 2021; two of those being courtesy of Lando Norris.
Lewis Hamilton’s second places in qualifying in 2007 and 2012 are the only two times that a McLaren driver has qualified on the front row at the Bahrain Grand Prix.
The team have been frequently unlucky on Saturdays here, whether that be Kimi Raikkonen failing to set a lap time at the inaugural event, the Finn’s suspension failure which saw him start last in 2006, Jenson Button who was unable to set a time after his car broke down on his out-lap in 2015 or Carlos Sainz’s brake failure in 2020.
The 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix marked the first time since 2014 that a McLaren driver had appeared in the top ten on the grid at the Sakhir circuit, with both Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz reaching Q3.
The 2021 Bahrain Grand Prix was the first time since 2014 that both McLaren drivers reached Q3 at the track, with Daniel Ricciardo qualifying sixth on his debut outing with the team, and Lando Norris just behind in seventh place.
For the first time since 2018, neither McLaren driver progressed to Q3 in 2022. Neither driver progressed to Q3 in 2023 either – but both drivers qualified in the top eight in 2024.
The team have had five Q1 exits in total at the track, including two in the last three seasons. Daniel Ricciardo recorded the team’s fourth Q1 exit at the circuit in 2022, while Oscar Piastri was out in Q1 on debut in 2023.
ASTON MARTIN
WINS: 1, POLES: 0, PODIUMS: 4 | 2024 BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX RESULT: ALONSO 9th, STROLL 10th
Team Silverstone claimed their first victory in 17 years at Bahrain International Circuit in 2020, with Sergio Perez victorious for Racing Point in the Sakhir Grand Prix. Team-mate Lance Stroll joined him on the podium, making it the first time that the Silverstone-based team had finished on the podium with both cars since the 1998 Belgian Grand Prix.
At the 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix, on his first appearance with the team, Fernando Alonso finished on the podium with Aston Martin while Lance Stroll finished sixth. Prior to that, the team had scored just one point at the venue since re-branding as Aston Martin in 2021. The team had another double-points scoring evening at the track in 2024, finishing ninth and tenth.
In the team’s pre-Force India history, Jordan, Midland and Spyker failed to pick up any points at this circuit. They first scored here in 2010, as Force India, with Vitantonio Liuzzi finishing in ninth place.
2014, 2017, 2023, 2024 and the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix are the only occasions on which the team has scored with both cars at this circuit.
In the team’s entire history at the event, they have recorded only four DNFs – two of those being a disappointing double DNF for Racing Point in the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix.
Until 2023, the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix was the only time in the V6 hybird era that both of the Silverstone-based team’s cars had qualified in the top ten in Bahrain. While 2022 marked the first time since 2019 that neither of the team’s cars appeared in Q3 at the track, both drivers qualified in the top eight for the 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix.
The team’s best-ever qualifying result at the circuit is fifth, which Fernando Alonso equalled in 2023. However, Sergio Perez lined up fourth on the grid as result of grid penalties for another driver in 2014.
The team had both cars eliminated in Q1 at the track every year between 2006 and 2009, but between 2009 and 2021 recorded only four Q1 exits here. In 2022, the team recorded its first double Q1 elimination at the track since 2009, with Nico Hulkenberg 17th and Lance Stroll 19th.
ALPINE
WINS: 2, POLES: 1, PODIUMS: 7* | 2024 BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX RESULT: OCON 17th, GASLY 18th
The Enstone team have recorded two wins at the Bahrain Grand Prix, with Renault victorious in 2005 and 2006. Since then, the team has had five podium finishes at the track. Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean finished on the podium for Lotus in both 2012 and 2013, while Esteban Ocon recorded Renault’s last podium finish with second place in the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix.
Though Renault scored with both cars in both the 2020 Bahrain and Sakhir Grands Prix, they failed to score in their first race as Alpine in 2021. Ocon finished in 13th place, while Fernando Alonso retired from the race. Alpine had more luck in 2022, with both drivers scoring – Ocon finishing 7th and Alonso 9th.
With Ocon retiring from the 2023 race, Pierre Gasly in ninth place – on his debut with the Alpine team- was the team’s only point scorer. Neither driver scored in 2024 in a disappointing start to the team’s season.
The 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix resulted in a double DNF for the team, with both Renault drivers retiring on the same lap, resulting in the team’s first ever double non-finish at the circuit.
Fernando Alonso scored the Enstone team’s only pole position in Bahrain back in 2005. The team has not reached Q3 with both cars at the Bahrain Grand Prix since 2020, with only one car reaching the top ten shootout in each season from 2020 to 2023.
In 2024, the team recorded a double Q1 exit – their only other in Bahrain having been in 2016. Between 2016 and 2024, the team recorded only three Q1 eliminations at the circuit – for Nico Hulkenberg in 2019, for Esteban Ocon in 2021 and for Pierre Gasly in 2023.
Since 2007, Daniel Ricciardo recorded the team’s best qualifying result at the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix with sixth place. Their last top five qualification here was under their Renault guise, back in 2006.
WILLIAMS
WINS: 0, POLES: 0, PODIUMS: 0 | 2024 BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX RESULT: ALBON 15th, SARGEANT 20th
At the 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix, Alex Albon picked up Williams’ first point in Bahrain since 2017. Despite their low points rate, in the last 13 races at the track the team have suffered only three DNFs – one a result of Carlos Sainz colliding with Lance Stroll at the pit exit in 2017 and the other results of mechanical issues for Nicholas Latifi at the 2020 Sakhir and 2021 Bahrain Grands Prix.
Williams have never finished on the podium at the Bahrain Grand Prix. The team’s best Bahrain result came in 2015, courtesy of Valtteri Bottas, who finished fourth.
2012 marks the only time neither Williams car has reached the finish of the race here. Bruno Senna was classified in the final result that year, but stopped just three laps short of the chequered flag.
Williams have never qualified on the front row for the Bahrain Grand Prix and Juan Pablo Montoya’s third place in qualifying in the very first race here remains their best qualifying showing at the track.
Williams have not reached Q3 at the Bahrain Grand Prix since 2017, when Felipe Massa qualified in eighth place.
There have been five seasons when both Williams have qualified in the top ten, most recently in 2016. In the last eight races at the circuit, George Russell and Alex Albon are the only Williams drivers to make it out of Q1 at the circuit. Russell did so at the 2020 and 2021 Bahrain Grands Prix, while Albon has done so in all of the last three seasons.
2019 is the only time that the team has locked-out the back row of the grid here.
VISA CASH APP RB
WINS: 0, POLES: 0, PODIUMS: 0 | 2024 BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX RESULT: RICCIARDO 13th, TSUNODA 14th
It wasn’t until 2016 that the Red Bull junior team picked up points at the Bahrain Grand Prix for the first time, with Max Verstappen finishing in sixth place for Toro Rosso. Since then, the 2017, 2023 and 2024 Bahrain Grands Prix are the only races at the track in which the team has failed to score.
Pierre Gasly recorded the team’s best result here with an impressive fourth place in the team’s second outing with Honda power. The team have had 12 DNFs in total here, including double non-finishes in 2007 and 2015.
Until 2020, the Red Bull junior team had never qualified with both cars in the top ten in Bahrain. They had four top ten qualifications in total between 2006 and 2018, with a best of sixth for Daniel Ricciardo in 2012 and for Pierre Gasly in 2018.
Both Gasly and Kvyat progressed to Q3 in both events held at the track in 2020, with Kvyat equalling the team’s best qualifying result here at the Sakhir Grand Prix. Gasly went one better in 2021, recording a new best-ever Bahrain qualifying result for the team with fifth place.
2007 and 2009 are the only times both cars have been eliminated in Q1. Since 2014, Carlos Sainz (in 2017), Yuki Tsunoda (in 2022) and Nyck de Vries (in 2023) are the only Red Bull junior drivers to have been eliminated in Q1 at the track.
SAUBER
WINS: 0, POLES: 1, PODIUMS: 1 | 2024 BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX RESULT: ZHOU 11th, BOTTAS 19th
Robert Kubica took the Sauber team’s only pole position in Formula 1 at the 2008 Bahrain Grand Prix, back when the team were backed by BMW. Kubica couldn’t convert the pole into a win, but nevertheless took the team’s sole podium finish in Sakhir with third place.
Sauber then failed to score at the event until 2018. Their dry spell came to an end when Marcus Ericsson finished ninth, marking only the fourth season in which the team scored points in Bahrain. As they became Alfa Romeo in 2019, Kimi Raikkonen brought the team a handful more points with seventh place.
In 2022, the team enjoyed its best result in Bahrain since 2008. Both making their first appearance with Alfa Romeo, Valtteri Bottas finished an impressive sixth, while Zhou Guanyu came home tenth. Bottas scored again in 2023, finishing eighth.
Despite their relatively low points rate, the Sauber team have had few DNFs here, with 2010 and 2014 being their only double non-finishes at the circuit. Their most recent DNF was for Ericsson in 2017.
Robert Kubica’s pole is the only front-row qualification for the team at this track, and there have been just seven other occasions on which they have qualified in the top ten.
In 2022, Valtteri Bottas recorded the team’s best qualifying result in Bahrain since 2008, with sixth on the grid. It’s one of only two occasions in the last 16 races at the track that the team has reached Q3. 2021 marked the first time since 2015 that neither of the team’s cars were eliminated in Q1 at the track, while both cars were out in 2024 in the team’s first double Q1 exit in Bahrain since 2020.
HAAS
WINS: 0, POLES: 0, PODIUMS: 0 | 2024 BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX RESULT: MAGNUSSEN 12th, HULKENBERG 16th
From ten appearances, Haas have seen both of their cars cross the finish line in Bahrain only five times
In 2022, Kevin Magnussen finished fifth, equalling the team’s best-ever result at the venue. Romain Grosjean also finished fifth in 2016, while Magnussen himself finished fifth in 2018.
In 2019, with Magnussen finishing 13th and Grosjean retiring, Haas failed to score at the Bahrain International Circuit for the first time in their four appearances. It was the first of four successive races here in which the team did not score, with Magnussen’s fifth place in 2022 being their only points-scoring appearance since.
In 2020, Grosjean was lucky to survive a fiery crash on the opening lap of the Bahrain Grand Prix. He was replaced by Pietro Fittipaldi at the Sakhir Grand Prix one week later.
In 2021, both Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin made their Grand Prix debuts at the circuit with the Haas team. While Schumacher completed the race in 16th – the last car still running at the end of the race – Mazepin spun out after just three corners.
The 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix marked the first time that neither Haas car qualified in the top ten at Bahrain International Circuit. One Haas car reached Q3 at the Bahrain Grand Prix in 2016, 2017 and 2018, while 2019 marked their first double Q3 appearance here. In 2022, Kevin Magnussen gave the team their first Q3 appearance in Bahrain since 2019 and Nico Hulkenberg reached Q3 on his debut with the team in 2023. The German reached Q3 again in 2024.
Haas saw both cars eliminated in Q1 in all three of 2020 and 2021’s races in Bahrain. In 2021, Schumacher and Mazepin set the two slowest times in the qualifying session. The team’s qualifying best effort here is Kevin Magnussen’s sixth place in 2019.
