Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2019 – Charles slowed by short circuit
Posted: 05.04.2019
Source: Ferrari
Maranello, 5 April 2019 – Charles Leclerc will use the same power unit in China that he used for the Bahrain Grand Prix. The unit will be duly fitted on the number 16 car, in which the Monegasque driver had to settle for third place having led the race in style until a few laps from the flag.
Anomaly. Following the race, the Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow technicians and engineers traced the fault on the car to a short circuit within an injection system control unit. This type of problem had never been seen before on the component in question.
Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2019 – Not the expected result
Posted: 31.03.2019
Source: Ferrari
Sakhir, 31 March 2019 – Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow leaves Bahrain with a feeling of regret after the second round of the Formula 1 World Championship, thinking about what might have been. All weekend long, the SF90 clearly demonstrated it had the potential to win, having rediscovered the competitive pace it had lost in Australia. However, in the end, it had to settle for a third place courtesy of Charles Leclerc and a fifth with Sebastian Vettel.
Sebastian got the better of his team-mate at the start to lead at the first corner. Charles found himself in third behind Valtteri Bottas in the Mercedes, but on the second lap, the Monegasque driver got past the Finn and closed on his team-mate. Charles had a better pace and passed Sebastian on lap 5 to take the lead.
On lap 13, Charles came in for his first pit stop, switching from the Soft to the Medium tyres, as did Sebastian on the following lap, the German rejoining behind Hamilton in the Mercedes who had stopped one lap earlier. The German took eight laps to attack and overtake his rival at Turn 4.
On lap 35, Sebastian made his second stop, once again duelling with the Englishman. The German ended up spinning and flatspotted his tyres which resulted in the front wing coming off due to the strong vibrations. He then had to pit again for a new one. Charles also came in again, on lap 36, but kept the lead setting the fastest lap with 1’33″411.
After his unscheduled stop, Sebastian rejoined ninth and charged up the order, passing Kimi Raikkonen then Lando Norris, Daniel Ricciardo and Nico Hulkenberg, to claim fifth place.
With 15 laps remaining, Charles’ car suffered a power unit problem which meant his pace slowed dramatically, The two Mercedes thus managed to pass him, but with two laps to go, the Safety Car came out to deal with two cars stopping on track at the same time, which froze the positions, so that Leclerc was at least able to enjoy the satisfaction of his first ever F1 podium finish. He thus equals Louis Chiron, the only other driver from Monaco to have made it to a Formula 1 podium, which he did in his home race in 1950, the race in which Scuderia Ferrari first took part in the World Championship.
Formula 1 is back in action in two weeks time with the Chinese Grand Prix, which will also be the one thousandth Grand Prix in the sport’s history.
Charles Leclerc #16
“It’s part of motorsport, we know that. Sometimes it’s not your day to win and today wasn’t ours. In the final part of the race we had an issue with the power unit and I had to slow down. It’s a shame because the race seemed to me to be under control. The team is disappointed and I am disappointed but there are a lot of positives to take home from this weekend. They gave me an amazing car and that is very much to their credit. The car was very easy to drive and was very good. These things happen in motorsport: we took the best out of it anyway. It’s my first podium even if I’m not enjoying it as much as I wanted. It’s life, it happens, we’ll come back stronger”.
Sebastian Vettel #5
“Not the race we wanted. We started first and second and we didn’t finish there. A disappointing evening. I had a good start but already halfway through the first lap I realised that the car was extremely difficult to drive. I think Charles struggled less as he had no difficulties in passing me. It was quite tough out there. Then we lost P2 at the pitstop but came back. In the second stint on the medium tyres maybe it was a bit better but overall we didn’t have the pace we should have had today. While battling with Lewis I made a mistake at turn 4, which is one of the trickiest corners on the track. I suddenly lost the car and I spun. In doing so, I damaged the tyres so much that I had quite a lot of vibrations, which eventually led to the failure of the front wing. It was Charles’ race today, he got very unlucky. I am sorry for him and for the team”.
Mattia Binotto Team Principal.
“It was a shame for Charles. He was in the lead for much of the race and showed that he was particularly comfortable here in Bahrain, also setting the race fastest lap. He deserved to win and it was only the reliability problem, which we must now investigate, which prevented him from doing so. That is something unacceptable from us and it shows how important it is to get every last detail right in order to win. With regards to Sebastian, these things can happen in racing when you are on the limit, therefore it is more important to consider the car, which today performed well. The team also did an excellent job, producing some really good pit stops. We head home with many positives on which to build for the rest of the season, such as our performance level and the way the team reacted. Clearly there are still various things that we have to learn and we will continue to work on them.”
Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2019 – Ferrari front row lockdown at Sakhir
Posted: 30.03.2019
Source: Ferrari
Sakhir, 30 March 2019 – Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow secured its 62nd Formula 1 front row lockdown today. Charles Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel were first and second fastest in qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix, the second round of the Formula 1 World Championship. It was Charles’ first F1 pole, making him the second youngest ever pole man after Sebastian and the youngest ever Ferrari driver to claim the number one spot on the grid. For the Maranello marque, this is pole number 220.
Q1. Charles and Sebastian comfortably made the first cut. The Monegasque driver did a 1’28”495 on his first run, while Seb did a 1’28”733.
Q2. In the second part of qualifying, traffic played a crucial role. Charles managed to get a clean run amongst the many cars on track, doing a 1’28”046 at his first attempt, which was good enough to put him in the fight for pole. Things did not go as smoothly for Sebastian, who was stuck behind slower cars, which meant he could do no better than 1’29”233, which was potentially not enough to get into the top ten. Therefore the German had to fit a second set of tyres to get through in 1’28”356, which left him with only one set of new tyres for the final shoot-out.
Q3. In the final part, Charles immediately posted an excellent 1’27”958 before pitting and waiting for the track to rubber-in still further, before trying to improve on new tyres. Sebastian made his only run when there were just under five minutes remaining, to go second quickest in 1’28”160. Not long after he crossed the line, Leclerc came along again and despite being sure of starting from pole, improved still further setting a new track record of 1’27”866. The Bahrain Grand Prix starts tomorrow at 18:10 local time (17:10 CET.)
Charles Leclerc #16
“This first pole position brings me a lot of emotions, even if I’m trying to stay as cool as possible, as there are no points for pole position and the race is tomorrow. It has been a great day and a great weekend overall for the team so far, so I hope it will continue tomorrow. I said it was a question of putting everything together for qualifying and it seems I did it, unlike what happened in the first race. It’s an amazing feeling but now we have to focus on the race and try to bring home the best possible result tomorrow. I feel more comfortable in the car lap after lap so I’m satisfied. Before the race we will talk with the team to find the perfect strategy in order to give the Scuderia the best possible result. The start will probably be the key as the track is dirty and it’s easy to have wheelspin”.
Sebastian Vettel #5
“Today we were in the fight. The main thing is we are back where we want to be. It’s tomorrow that counts, but for today we can certainly be very happy as we are in a much better place than two weeks ago. Today it’s about Ferrari and about Charles who did a very very good job and nailed his laps in Q3 and he deserved to be on pole. He’s a good kid, actually, a good man, because once you get a pole in Formula 1 you are a man! It’s a big achievement and I am happy for him. Chapeau! Our one lap pace was there the whole weekend and we were able to confirm this in qualifying. I’m a lot happier today and it’s good to see that we are back on the right track”.
Mattia Binotto Team Principal
We are all very pleased for Ferrari, for Charles’ very first pole, for having locked down the first row and for our comeback after Australia. The team reacted strongly and worked well, united and focused. It’s a great team, a very good team. There’s also an excellent spirit of cooperation between our drivers and Charles is indeed a good kid. Our qualifying pace was good but it was a tough one and it’s tomorrow that really counts. It’s a very long way to the chequered flag and reliability will be important. We need to stay calm and concentrated, as our rivals will be trying to make our life difficult tomorrow. It’s a long season, so let’s take it step by step.
Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2019 – Leclerc ahead of Vettel in FP3
Posted: 30.03.2019
Source: Ferrari
Sakhir, 30 March 2019 – The third and final free practice session for the Bahrain Grand Prix saw the Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow SF90s of Charles Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel continue to top the time sheet, as they have done all weekend so far. However, it’s this afternoon that things get serious and the times really count, when qualifying takes place at 18:00 (16:00 CET) to decide the grid for tomorrow’s race, which kicks off at 18:10 (17:10 CET.)
Wind and dust. Overnight rain and strong winds affected the session for everyone, so that times were not as quick as in the Friday practice. Charles Leclerc ran 15 laps, the quickest in a time of 1’29”569, while Sebastian Vettel did one lap more, stopping the clocks in 1’29”738.
Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2019 – The Friday checks
Posted: 29.03.2019
Source: Ferrari
Sakhir, 29 March 2019 – Today’s free practice for the Bahrain Grand Prix followed a slightly different programme to usual for Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow. In fact, the team’s primary aim was to check the efficiency of measures applied to the SF90s of Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc following the Australian Grand Prix.
FP1. During the first 90 minutes of track time, the team carried out a series of tests to check the work carried out in various areas. The two Ferraris ended up fastest of all: Charles did 20 laps and stopped the clocks in 1’30`’354, while Sebastian did 21 laps with a best of 1’30”617. Both drivers did tyre and set-up work.
FP2. The evening session was run in more relevant conditions for simulation runs, with practice starting at 18:00 (16:00 CET) the same time at which qualifying will start tomorrow and just 10 minutes earlier than the race start on Sunday (17:10 CET). As usual in this session, the cars ran in both race and qualifying trim. On low fuel runs, Sebastian was quickest in 1’28”846, slightly faster than Charles who managed a 1’28”881. Both drivers did 32 laps, bringing their daily total to respectively 52 and 53.
Sebastian Vettel #5. “The car is not yet where it was in Barcelona. Certainly, it’s better today than in Australia. It was a better day overall, but we still need to pick up the pace for tomorrow. I am not entirely happy. It has been quite a tricky day because the track was very slippery and it was difficult to always extract the best from the tyres. We were on a different strategy compared to other drivers and teams, that’s why for tomorrow we still need to improve. I think we have some more potential in the car that we have to unleash for qualifying”.
Charles Leclerc #16. “I think it was a good Friday and balance wise I think we are definitely looking better than in Australia. Having said that, it’s better to keep our feet on the ground. I’m pretty sure our rivals didn’t show their real pace today, so tomorrow will not be an easy day for sure. Overall I’m satisfied as we were able to run our full programme, including some fast laps in the second session, as FP3 will not be that representative because of the temperatures. I felt more comfortable in the car lap after lap. Now it’s all about putting everything together tomorrow”.
Mattia Binotto Team Principal. “Today we concentrated mainly on the problems we had in Australia, running a programme aimed at checking if the measures we introduced had fixed them. That’s why I think it’s difficult to compare our performance to our competitors today. I think we are in better shape than in Australia. However, I still think our rivals are very strong and that the performance levels in qualifying and the race will be very close.”
Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2019 – Vettel ahead of Leclerc in second practice
Posted: 29.03.2019
Source: Ferrari
Sakhir, 29 March 2019 – Once again in the second free practice session for the Bahrain Grand Prix, the two Ferrari drivers were fastest of all, this time with Sebastian Vettel ahead of Charles Leclerc. On the job sheet for the second 90-minute Friday session were tyre and set-up evaluation taking into consideration the drop in temperature.
Simulations. As usual in the second free practice session, the drivers ran different tyre types and various fuel loads to simulate different parts of qualifying and the race. Both Sebastian and Charles did 32 laps, with best times of 1’28”846 and 1’28”881 respectively.
Qualifying and race. Tomorrow’s action starts with the third free practice session at 15:00 (13:00 CET) with qualifying following at 18:00 (16:00 CET.) The race gets underway on Sunday at 18:10 (17:10 CET.)
Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2019 – Ferrari tops the time sheet in first free practice
Posted: 29.03.2019
Source: Ferrari
Sakhir, 29 March 2019 –Charles Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel were first and second fastest respectively in the first free practice session for the Bahrain GP, at the wheel of their SF90s.
20 and 21 laps. Slow lap times were the order of the day early in the session as windy weather in the past few days had blown sand across the track, but as the racing line was gradually cleaned, the times began to tumble. Charles Leclerc did 20 laps, with a best time of 1’30”354 while Sebastian Vettel did 21 laps and stopped the clocks in 1’30”617. The second session gets underway at 18:00 local time (16:00 CET.)
Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2019 – “The team mentality is the right one”
Posted: 28.03.2019
Source: Ferrari
Sakhir, 28 March 2019 – As usual, Thursday was the time for media work for the Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow drivers, Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc, who tomorrow take to the track for free practice at the Bahrain Grand Prix, the second round of the Formula 1 World Championship.
Sebastian. A relaxed Sebastian Vettel was first up to meet the press in the team hospitality and he tackled a variety of topics, including the performance of the SF90 and expectations for the upcoming Grand Prix. Sebastian won here last year and he has good memories, including tangible ones such as the trophy. “I love the trophy here in Bahrain. I think it’s the best of the season. It’s big and heavy, that’s the way it should be!” he said. The German even engaged in a discussion on his recently acquired and highly visible moustache. Someone referenced a resemblance to Nigel Mansell, a former Scuderia driver and the 1992 World Champion. “If I was inspired by Mansell? Well, maybe it is! I like Nigel! I think he is a great person and was a Lion in the car. I like old Nige!”
Charles. Then it was Charles Leclerc’s turn, as he was on the panel in the first official press conference of the weekend. Asked to look back at his first race with Scuderia Ferrari in Australia, Charles had this to say: “Of course, it’s something special for a driver, but I didn’t feel under any particular pressure. Actually, here, more than anything I am focussed on performing better than I did in Australia. It was not an easy weekend, as we expected more after the positive outcome of the Barcelona test. I believe our package is strong and we found the answers to our lack of performance in Melbourne, although maybe not all of them. Here we will see if the Australian performance was down to a track specific issue or something else. The team mentality is the right one”, Charles added, “and we must keep it through the year. There is a lot of work to do but I am confident the team will do everything to improve the car. We are all working together as a team and that’s good.”
Free Practice. Now the track will give its verdict with two free practice sessions on Friday starting at 14:00 and 18:00 local time (12:00 and 16:00 CET.)
Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2019 – Seb and Charles’ expectations
Posted: 26.03.2019
Source: Ferrari
Sebastian Vettel #5
“From a driver’s point of view, I would describe the level of difficulty for this circuit as basically ‘normal’. However, it is hard to find the right rhythm in the desert, mainly because of the sand that the wind blows onto the track. Therefore every lap is different, which can be a decisive factor, especially in qualifying. If you move just a few inches off the ideal line, you start to slide and you can throw your lap in the bin, because you just can’t make up the time you lose at this point. Therefore, the rate of mistakes is significantly higher than at other circuits. You need to be patient before overtaking, maybe waiting for the driver in front of you to have a small slide. There are two very good overtaking opportunities: at the first corner and at corner 14, after the long straight”.
Charles Leclerc #16
“Bahrain is a pretty technical track with quite extreme conditions. So it’s always interesting for us to try different things on the car during free practice, in order to be as well prepared as possible for all the various situations that we might experience in the race. It’s a track which I really enjoy driving. I also have some very good memories here. I started here in Formula 2 and had some great races, although last year was a little bit harder as I was just at the beginning of my career in Formula 1. I can’t wait to race there with Ferrari, hopefully bringing home a good result”.
Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2019 – Binotto: “Traction and braking key factors at Sakhir”
Posted: 25.03.2019
Source: Ferrari
Maranello, 25 March 2019 – The second round of the 2019 Formula 1 World Championship takes place in Bahrain at the Sakhir circuit. The track is 5.412 kilometres long and the race is run over 57 laps. It is well known for its long straights and the heavy demand it places on the braking system, the two most difficult points being at turns 1 and 14.
Six wins. Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow has won six times in Bahrain. The first victory came in the inaugural edition of the race in 2004, courtesy of Michael Schumacher, before Felipe Massa won in 2007 and 2008. 2010 was the only year in which the race was run on the 6.299 kilometre “endurance” layout of the track and the winner was Fernando Alonso, making his debut with Ferrari, thus joining an exclusive club made up of Juan Manuel Fangio, Giancarlo Baghetti, Mario Andretti, Nigel Mansell and Kimi Raikkonen. Sebastian Vettel has won for Ferrari in both the past two years.
Two DRS Zones. The track has two sections where the moveable rear wing can come into play: one before turn 1 and the other in the section made up of turns 10 to 11. Qualifying are at 18 local time (16 CET) while the race start is at 18:10 local time (17.10 CET), making it a night race, run under floodlights every bit as bright as the sun. The track temperature therefore drops throughout the race as night falls. Pirelli is bringing its C1, C2 and C3 compounds, the hardest three in use this season.
Mattia Binotto Team Principal
“The Bahrain Grand Prix is the second round of what will be a very long and demanding season. The Sakhir circuit has very different characteristics to the Australian one, with traction and braking being key factors. In Bahrain, as a team, we will have to ensure that we have understood and rectified the areas where we were weak in Australia, which therefore meant we were unable to fully exploit our car’s potential. In Bahrain, we expect to see the effect of the corrections we have made, although we are well aware that our competitors will once again be very strong. With that in mind, we are keen to get back on track and face up to them.”