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Mercedes has been the benchmark in F1 for a long time. Hence, it was somewhat surprising to hear Haas driver Kevin Magussen say he has the fastest car in midfield and was able to keep up with the Mercedes up front at the Bahrain GP.
Speaking after the race, Magnussen said:
"It was very funny. It's really nice to be back in this position and I just have to thank the team for the incredible work done. We were the fastest mid-table car on the track. I was able to follow Mercedes for almost the entire race."
He added:
"Of course, it is true that the safety car helped us at the end, but today we have seen a different story than in the past. As I've said all weekend, I still can't believe the opportunity I had. It's crazy to think we finished in fifth position. "
Magnussen started the race in seventh and was able to finish in fifth thanks to the retirement of the two Red Bull cars. The race was a true indication of a complete transformation for Haas as the team that was a legitimate backmarker at the end of the 2021 season is now a proper midfield team.
Mercedes: The result in the Bahrain GP extraordinary
It's hard to believe that the German team will feel that a '3-4' finish in a race will be anything but disappointing. In reality, however, the result was flattering to deceive the kind of mess the team finds itself in.
The two cars were nearly half a minute behind the pair of Red Bull and Ferrari when the safety car was deployed and were never in contention for a podium finish. After the race, both George Russell and Lewis Hamilton termed the result extraordinary as neither expected the car to finish on the podium.
The German team, at least for now, seem to have a mountain to climb in the championship and it will be interesting to see if they can bridge the gap to the front.
