Heidfeld: Renault and Honda will be top dogs.

Nick Heidfeld has predicted that Renault and Honda will lead the way in Bahrain next weekend, the opening round of the 2006 FIA Formula One World Championship.

Heidfeld, who will race for the BMW Sauber team this year, added that he is looking forward to the event, especially as he missed the final four races last season with Williams due to injury.

"Bahrain is hosting the curtain-raiser for the first time. That's something very special, and I think it will be reflected in the atmosphere of the event," he noted. "They say ticket sales are high.

"What's special about the circuit is quite simply that it's in the desert. It means the track surface is always very sandy and dirty at the start, which results in very little grip. Lap times only improve gradually. Record temperatures such as the 42 Celsius we had last year are probably not on the cards for 2006, so the race won't be quite such a strain. The Bahrain circuit is an average to high-speed track. It demands high aerodynamic efficiency and a good engine for the long straight.

"We did a lot of testing over the winter and I feel pretty confident. I'm desperately looking forward to my first race after a long gap and I can't wait to see what the competition is like. It's hard to make any predictions, but my guess is that Renault and Honda will be in the lead to start with, possibly followed by McLaren and Ferrari, and then a group of closely bunched teams. We will probably be in with that group."