15:25
Lap 13/57
Alonso is through!
He makes the most of DRS into Turn 1 and then again into Turn 4 to complete the move.
Good stuff.
Max Verstappen (NLD), Red
How the 2023 F1 Bahrain Grand Prix unfolded
The 2023 F1 Bahrain Grand Prix is done and dusted!
Max Verstappen wins from pole position. Fernando Alonso sensationally overtakes Lewis Hamilton to claim a podium finish!
- F1 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix - Full Race results from Round 1
- 'No power, no power!' Leclerc forced into Bahrain GP retirement
Follow all the reaction from Bahrain here with the Crash.net live blog.
05 Mar 2023
15:22
Russell radio
"The tyres are gone! We need to think about boxing."
15:21
Russell struggling?
Alonso is now within 0.5s of the Mercedes driver, using DRS to close up.
The Spaniard can't get close enough to make a move, though.
15:20
Verstappen team radio
"Downshifts are giving me a bit of rear locking."
15:19
Lap 10/57
Alonso is now in DRS range of Russell in the battle for sixth.
15:17
An interesting radio message from Russell
"Is Lewis managing or is he slow? I feel like I've got more pace than him."
15:16
Tsunoda team radio
"I think I have a tear off in my left sidepod," Tsunoda reports - he's running in 14th.
15:14
Lap 7/57
Verstappen, Leclerc, Perez, Sainz, Hamilton, Russell, Alonso, Stroll, Bottas, Ocon, Albon, Norris, Sargeant, Tsunoda, Hulkenberg, Piastri, Zhou, Gasly, de Vries and Magnussen.
15:12
Race start
15:12
Credit to Williams
A great start for both Williams drivers, with Albon up to 11th; Sargeant is 13th behind Norris at the moment.
15:11
Lap 5/57
A lock-up for Leclerc into Turn 1 but he maintains second behind Verstappen, now 3.9s off the lead.
15:10
Domination from Verstappen
On Lap 4, he's already 3.0s clear of Leclerc.
15:09
Incident noted
The Alonso-Stroll contact at Turn 4 has been noted by the stewards.
15:07
Lap 3/57
Verstappen is already 1.7s clear of Leclerc at the front of the field.
Not a lot going on at the moment as we wait for DRS to be active.
15:06
Order on Lap 2
Verstappen, Leclerc, Perez, Sainz, Hamilton, Russell, Alonso, Bottas, Stroll, Norris, Ocon, Albon, Sargeant, Hulkenberg, Tsunoda, Piastri, Zhou, Magnussen, Gasly and de Vries.
15:06
Contact between the Astons
Alonso and Stroll touch into Turn 4. Both drivers seem to have got away with it though.
15:05
Verstappen leads
Verstappen keeps his lead into Turn 1 from Leclerc, Perez, Sainz and Hamilton.
15:03
We're underway
It's lights out and away we go for the 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix!
Keep with us as we bring you updates throughout the race.
15:00
Formation lap is underway
Verstappen leads the pack away in Bahrain.
In two minutes, the 2023 F1 season would have started officially!
14:58
Tyres
Everyone on the red-marked softs except Magnussen, who is on the hards.
14:55
We're almost ready #BahrainGP#F1pic.twitter.com/6079TEwbs1
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 5, 2023
14:52
10 minutes to go
We're nearly there guys!
Our prediction: Verstappen, Perez, Alonso, Hamilton, Leclerc.
14:44
It's time for the national anthem
Not long to go now - just 15 minutes - until lights out.
It's now time for the Bahrain national anthem.
14:38
Watch and subscribe!
14:32
Reminder of the grid
Verstappen, Perez, Leclerc, Sainz, Alonso, Russell, Hamilton, Stroll, Ocon, Hulkenberg, Norris, Bottas, Zhou, Tsunoda, Albon, Sargeant, Magnussen, Piastri, de Vries and Gasly.
(L to R): Fernando Alonso (ESP) Aston Martin F1 Team and Sergio Perez (MEX…
