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The 2024 F1 Bahrain GP was as dominant a start to a season as one could have expected. Max Verstappen completed a grand chelem by leading every lap in the race, securing pole position, the fastest lap, and the win.
While there were many who expected the Red Bull driver to win the race, not many would have expected him to do it by being almost a lap quicker than everyone else from the very first lap.
The driver was accompanied on the podium by teammate Sergio Perez, who was more than 20 seconds behind him. In third, we had Carlos Sainz, who pulled off a few blistering moves to secure a podium for himself ahead of teammate Charles Leclerc.
The chequered flag fell on the 2024 F1 Bahrain GP in a manner that left a bit to be desired, as single team dominance is definitely not what fans usually want. Having said that, this also drew an end to the first race weekend of the season. So after the first three official days of F1, what have we learned? Let's take a look.
2024 F1 Bahrain GP: What have we learned?
#1 Max Verstappen is winning the 2024 F1 world championship
He was the favorite anyway, but the thing about Max Verstappen and what has stood out for him is that the Dutch driver just doesn't make mistakes. He's spot on most of the time which puts even more pressure on his opponents.
Unfortunately for the field, that Red Bull car is just a monster in the hands of Max Verstappen. The way he was gapping everyone, including his teammate, was just astounding to watch and a testament of how brilliant he is.
With this advantage in the car, the driver is not getting caught, and a fourth title already looks like a formality.
#2 The F1 product is suffering!
One of the biggest reasons why there is a lot of negativity around F1 at this moment is not because a single team is dominating. It is because there isn't enough intrigue left, nor is there any great wheel-to-wheel action on track because the cars are back to being too hard to follow.
It almost appears that F1 took its eye off the ball after 2021 and has been paying for it ever since. The product is back to what it was in 2014-16, and Max Verstappen doesn't have a teammate that can push him, which Lewis Hamilton did at the time.
#3 Ferrari might need to rethink how it manages Carlos Sainz
The 2024 F1 Bahrain GP could potentially have been a P2 finish for Charles Leclerc if his Ferrari hadn't had brake issues. Unfortunately, it did, and that led to a situation where the driver was a sitting duck against his teammate.
Having said that, the Italian team needs to be careful about how it manages Carlos Sainz.
He was undercut by Leclerc after he overtook him on the track, and then post race, the team was not present in the park ferme. There's a point where it starts reflecting badly on the team, and Ferrari is very close to that already.
#4 The Mercedes power unit suffered in F1 Bahrain GP
The Mercedes power unit was the one that apparently had quite a few issues. The working cars had cooling issues that cost them close to half a second. This was precisely why both George Russell and Lewis Hamilton spent the entirety of F1 Bahrain GP managing their respective cars.
Williams also faced a few overheating issues, and that apparently thwarted the kind of progress Alex Albon would have made.
#5 Aston Martin needs to get serious about F1
The F1 Bahrain GP is a race that shows the mirror to Aston Martin. The team is already a one-driver team, with Lance Stroll being a liability (even though he had a good run in Bahrain). To add to this, one has to question what's next for this car and the team.
The team was a distant 5th in 2023 at the end of the season. It started the 2024 F1 season in the same position. Where's the growth, if any, and what is the team doing to address it?
Aston Martin has a major task in its hands if it has Fernando Alonso in its ranks.
#6 Haas has done a brilliant job in the winter
Haas could have scored a point in the 2024 F1 Bahrain GP, and it would have been on merit. The team has gone back to the drawing board and built a car that still has impressive qualifying speed, but to back it up, the car has strong race pace as well. Nico Hulkenberg's clumsy move at the start cost him a point, but the signs are positive for this team.
#7 Alpine is a sinking ship
The end of the F1 Bahrain GP saw Esteban Ocon not utter a single word as his race came to an end. Yesterday, when he was eliminated in qualifying, the French driver was supportive as well as motivating the team. Why did he not do that today? Well, because news came out that the Alpine technical director had resigned from the position.
Who is going to replace him? Nobody knows. Has Alpine signed anyone? Nobody knows. It's almost as if the French squad has read the book on how to be successful in Formula 1 and dared not to follow even a single principle of it.
Alpine is a sinking ship, and it would not come as a surprise if neither of the drivers stuck with the team beyond 2024.
#8 Guanyu Zhou was surprisingly brilliant
While quite a few others made the headlines, Zhou drove a brilliant race that went under the radar. The Chinese driver can be a bit unassuming on the track, but his F1 Bahrain GP campaign is certainly going to give him confidence.
#9 Yuki Tsunoda just showed at the F1 Bahrain GP why Red Bull won't consider a promotion for him
What Yuki did post race to Daniel Ricciardo when he divebombed him out of nowhere was just not acceptable, and it was just the last straw that Red Bull needed to keep him out of contention for a promotion.
Yuki is not Max Verstappen, and he's not Sebastian Vettel. What he's contending for is the second seat at Red Bull. For that seat, these tantrums are a big no and sooner than later, Yuki is going to realise that.
#10 Williams will be eager for Jeddah to get a clearer picture
Williams was severely hampered by engine overheating as well as the steering wheel issue that struck both drivers. The car should not ideally be this bad, as is indicated by where the two drivers finished. Having said that, the team will be eager to move on from the 2024 F1 Bahrain GP and see if Jeddah offers something better.
