How many of your pre-race predictions for the 2021 Bahrain Grand Prix were correct? Find out below!
1. WHICH TEAM WILL WIN THE RACE?
YOUR PREDICTION: MERCEDES
CORRECT ANSWER: MERCEDES
Mercedes won this pole by the slimmest of margins – and they won the race by the slimmest of margins too. Those backing Red Bull were in the optimal position when Max Verstappen took pole position by almost four tenths of a second. On race day, a strategic battle ensued between Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton. Hamilton emerged on top – despite Verstappen’s best efforts to pass him.
2. WHERE WILL ALONSO FINISH?
YOUR PREDICTION: 6th – 10th
CORRECT ANSWER: 16th or lower / DNF
Fernando Alonso impressed on his comeback to Formula 1. After reaching Q3 on Saturday, the Spaniard ran within the top ten until a brake issue saw him retire from the race.
3. WHICH McLAREN DRIVER WILL RECORD THE BEST QUALIFYING POSITION?
YOUR PREDICTION: DANIEL RICCIARDO
CORRECT ANSWER: DANIEL RICCIARDO
On their first outing as McLaren team-mates, newcomer to the team Daniel Ricciardo out-qualified team-mate Lando Norris. Ricciardo set the faster lap by just 0.047 seconds – not a massive surprise, considering the Australian has never been out-qualified by a team-mate at the venue.
4. WHICH ROOKIE WILL FINISH IN THE BEST POSITION?
YOUR PREDICTION: YUKI TSUNODA
CORRECT ANSWER: YUKI TSUNODA
As over 80% of you predicted, Yuki Tsunoda finished in the best position of the three rookies. Tsunoda finished in ninth place, becoming the first driver to score points on debut since Stoffel Vandoorne at the 2016 Bahrain Grand Prix. While Mick Schumacher finished sixteenth, team-mate Nikita Mazepin crashed out of his own accord just three corners into the race.
5. WHO’LL SCORE MORE POINTS – ASTON MARTIN, ALPINE OR FERRARI?
YOUR PREDICTION: ASTON MARTIN
CORRECT ANSWER: FERRARI
Ferrari scored the most points of this trio of teams. Charles Leclerc finished sixth, while Carlos Sainz was eighth on his Ferrari debut, placing Ferrari fourth in the Constructors’ Championship after the first round. While Alpine failed to score, Aston Martin picked up a solitary point with Lance Stroll’s tenth place.
Let us know how you got on with this race’s predictions! There’ll be more predictions to be made ahead of the next Grand Prix. Follow Lights Out on twitter to take part: @LightsOutF1Blog!
