Alonso shone in the Bahrain sun today to take the first win of the 2006 season from Michael Schumacher and Kimi Raikkonen.
In what was a good race for the opening of the season, Schumacher Snr led for the first half, but succombed to Fernando’s breath-taking pace in the final third to lose the lead after the Spaniard’s final stop.
Kimi drove a superb race, coming from the very back of the grid after qualifying issues to finish on the podium, closely followed by the boy Button and McLaren’s other car piloted by Juan Pablo Montoya.
Giancarlo Fisichella continues his bad luck from 2005 with engine-mappng problems and finally a hydraulics failure, forcing him to retire after telling the the team how bad the car was with some rather colourful language! Felipe Massa in the sister Ferrari also had a poor race, spinning out just before turn one and almost taking the reigning world champion with him. Massa managed to lock a rear wheel whilst under braking which forced a spin and ultimately destroyed his chances of success in Bahrain.
The Williams ran well. with both Webber and Rosberg scoring points, and Nico even managed to put some noteworthy lap times, making the car and the Cosworth engine look pretty impressive. Nico has obviously been working hard over the winter, and his performance today was very, very good. I can see the son of former world champion Keke having a bright career in Formula One, and the 2006 Williams could be the signal that the team is once again on the up.
Super Aguri played musical pitstops during the race, having to deal with faulty fuel rigs and two cars stopping on the same lap. I am pleased they managed to get to Bahrain, but I stand by my opinion that they should have waited another year before contending in races. Hopefully, they will improve as the season progresses, but I can’t see them bettering Midland.
Well done to Red Bull who had a reasonable race, and whilst they may not have made leaps and bounds up the pecking order thus far, at least they are in a similar position to last year. Klien managed to finish 8th in the end, picking up the final point, and Coulthard was just behind in 9th.
Toyota were nowhere, but that was to be expected. Trulli and Ralf had an interesting first half battling each other, but sadly they were at the back and soon the TV cameras were focusing on other battles nearer the front.
2006 looks like it is going to be a good year for F1. Renault look mighty, Ferrari have improved, Honda are in a 2004 type position, but with more experience and funding now, they should be able to capitalise on it a bit better. BMW Sauber look good as well to lead the midfield and have some battles with Red Bull.
All in all, a good season opener. Bring on Malaysia…
Final Result
1. Alonso – Renault
2. M Schumacher – Ferrari
3. Raikkonen – McLaren
4. Button – Honda
5. Montoya – McLaren
6. Webber – Williams
7. Rosberg – Williams
8. Klien – Red Bull
9. Coulthard – Red Bull
10. Massa – Ferrari
11. Liuzzi – Toro Rosso
12. Heidfeld – BMW Sauber
13. Speed – Toro Rosso
14. R Schumacher – Toyota
15. Barrichello – Honda
16. Trulli – Toyota
17. Monteiro – Midland
18. Sato – Super Aguri
Ret. Ide – Super Aguri
Ret. Villeneuve – BMW Sauber
Ret. Fisichella – Renault
Ret. Albers – Midland
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