2020 Sakhir Grand Prix

## Lap Leader

The **2020 Sakhir Grand Prix** was a Formula 1.5 motor race that took place on 6 December 2020. The race was contested over 87 laps of the 'Outer Circuit' configuration of the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain. It was the first Formula 1.5 race on this track configuration. The race was the sixteenth and penultimate round in the 2020 World Championship and the second of two back-to-back races in Bahrain, with the Bahrain Grand Prix having taken place on the 'Grand Prix' configuration of the circuit one week beforehand. The race also marked the first running of the **Sakhir Grand Prix**.

## Background

### **Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic**

Most of the races originally planned for the 2020 championship were postponed or cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The FIA drafted a new schedule in order to maximise the number of races on the calendar. In August 2020 the Sakhir Grand Prix was added to the schedule. It was held on 6 December 2020, one week after the Bahrain Grand Prix was held at the same venue. The Grand Prix was officially held behind closed doors, but authorities did give guest passes to local health workers and their families to attend in recognition of their efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic in Bahrain.

### **Championship Permutations**

#### **Drivers Championship**

Going into the weekend, Daniel Ricciardo was leading the championship over Sergio Perez however, Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc who were 3rd and 4th in the championship could also still clinch the title mathmatically.

Charles Leclerc went into the weekend on 157 points, which is 52 points behind Ricciardo. With a maxium of 26 points available a weekend, Leclerc would have to win both and score the fastest lap in both races, whilst Ricciardo would not score. This would give Charles Leclerc the title by countback. In order to stop Leclerc, Ricciardo had to score just 1 point in either race.

Lando Norris from McLaren was on 168 points in the drivers championship which was 41 points behind the Australian of Daniel Ricciardo. It was impossible for Lando to re-take the championship lead from Ricciardo at this race, however if he outscored Ricciardo by 15 points or more (finishing 3rd or higher) at this event he would stay in championship contention for the final race at Abu Dhabi. If Ricciardo finished 6th or higher at this event, Norris would be unable to win the championship. However, if Norris failed to secure third or higher at the chequered flag, he would not be able to win the championship either, no matter where Ricciardo finished in the race.

Two time Formula 1.5 Champion Sergio Perez was in 2nd in the Championship, just 24 points behind. In order to win the championship Ricciardo had to out-score Perez by just 2 points. The permutations for the top two going into the race were:

#### **Constructors Championship**

In the constructors championship, Racing Point lead on 318 points over reigning champions McLaren who were on 312 points. French outfit Renault were in third just a further 6 points behind. Ferrari were also in contention, although were unlikley victors on 240 points, a whole 78 points off leaders Racing Point.

For Ferrari to stay in the championship fight they must outscore Racing Point by 34 points. This would mean Ferrari would need to score at least one of the drivers on the podium, if not both depending on where the Racing Point's finishes.

Renault and McLaren were close to Racing Point and had to not let Racing Point outscore them by 38 points for McLaren and 32 points for Renault.

### **Circuit Layout**

This race used the 'Outer Circuit' layout, the first Formula 1.5 race to be held on this layout. At 3.543 km (2.202 mi) it was shorter than the 5.412 km (3.363 mi) 'Grand Prix' layout, which was used for the Bahrain Grand Prix the week prior. The race was contested over 87 laps to exceed the 305 km (190 mi) race distance mandated by the regulations. Lap times in all sessions were under one minute.

McLaren driver Lando Norris likened the layout's high speed nature to the Thruxton circuit in the United Kingdom, whilst regular Williams driver George Russell said he expected the layout to be "bonkers". Renault driver Daniel Ricciardo expressed his hope that the circuit would provide good overtaking opportunities, with Carlos Sainz Jr. of McLaren suggesting that choosing the correct setup, particularly downforce levels, would be difficult.

Some drivers declared themselves unhappy with the circuit layout after driving it in the Friday free practice sessions. Drivers such as Sainz Jr. and Max Verstappen feared potential safety issues during the first and second knockout sessions in qualifying, with the high probability of close proximity between cars on track due to the short lap distance and the potential huge discrepancies in closing speeds between cars, particularly in the early parts of qualifying, with Sainz saying the layout "was on the verge of being dangerous" and urging the FIA to take action. Verstappen also described the layout as "not the most exciting" while Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel called the layout "too short" and his Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc said the circuit reminded him of his karting days. Despite driver concerns of the exceptionally short laptime creating traffic problems in qualifying, the FIA confirmed they would not relax the sport's rules on impeding during qualifying and that penalties would still be handed out to any driver found guilty of impeding a competitor.

### **Entrants**

The drivers and teams were the same as the pre-season entry list with two exceptions. Debutant Pietro Fittipaldi replaced Romain Grosjean for Haas, after the latter's crash at the previous week's Bahrain Grand Prix. Formula One Driver Lewis Hamilton had tested positive for COVID-19, this saw Williams F1.5 Driver George Russell get a promotion for the weekend to Mercedes in Formula One. Jack Aitkin took his place to make his F1.5 debut with Williams.

### **Tyres**

Pirelli brought their C2, C3, and C4 compound tyres (the middle range of hardnesses) for teams to use in dry conditions.

## Practice

The first of three practice sessions took place on Friday evening, with Kvyat at the top of the timesheet for AlphaTauri ahead of Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon. The second practice session took place on Friday night and Racinf Point driver Sergio Perez topped the session ahead of Estaban Ocon and Daniil Kvyat. The third practice session took place on Saturday, and Gasly was fastest ahead of Ocon and Norris.

## Race Report

A three way fight for the lead began on the run up to turn four between Leclerc and Perez. As the two navigated turn four, Leclerc braked late and hit Pérez, causing the Mexican to spin and damaging Leclerc's front suspension. The incident triggered a safety car. Leclerc retired, but Pérez was able to rejoin and, after a tyre change, ran at the back of the field. After the race, Leclerc was penalised three grid spots for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix for his part in the incident.

The safety car was withdrawn on lap 7 with Sainz leading Pérez made his way up into a points-paying tenth position by lap 20. By lap 50, all teams had made their first round of pit stops. Pérez, having taken a second stop for fresh tyres, ran in seventh.

With the leaders on lap 54, Nicholas Latifi retired his Williams from 131h place, after turn 8 with an oil leak, triggering a virtual safety car (VSC). Several drivers pitted for tyres. Sainz and Daniel Ricciardo were caught out by how brief the VSC was, and dropped down the order as they pitted under racing conditions. Pérez, who did not pit during this safety car period, made his way up to 1st, with Esteban Ocon's Renault in second and Lance Stroll in third.

On lap 61, Jack Aitken, racing for Williams in 14th place, spun and knocked off his front wing against a barrier, which came to rest on the track at the exit of turn 11. The second virtual safety car of the race was called to allow marshals to remove the wing from the track. On lap 63, The virtual safety car was changed to a full safety car. The safety car ended on lap 69.

Perez won the race from Ocon and Stroll. This was the 2nd time this year that that F1 podium was the same as the F1.5.

### **Post Race**

Renault driver Daniel Ricciardo was left frustrated after feeling his team gave rivals Racing Point the opportunity to win with strategic errors.

In the Drivers Championship, Leclerc retired on Lap 1 which means he falls out of contention. Lando Norris scored 6 points, where Ricciardo scored 10 points. This meant Norris did not outscore Ricciardo by the 15 points he had to, putting him out of contention the 2020 world title. Perez, won the race with the fastest lap, which means he cut Riccairdo's lead by 16 points. The gap at the end of the race was 9 points. The title goes to Abu Dhabi.

In the constructors championship, Racing Point extended their lead however did not win the championship. Renault moved above McLaren to 2nd place with a total of 334 points to McLarens 330. All 3 teams could still win the championship at the next round. Ferrari only scored 2 points during the race aftewr Leclerc's retirment. This means they can not win the 2020 World Championship.

## Championship Standings after the race

Drivers' Championship standings

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Constructors' Championship standings

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## References

1. ↑  Lando Norris was required to start from the back of the grid for exceeding his quota of power unit elements
2. ↑  Pietro Fittipaldi was required to start from the back of the grid for exceeding his quota of power unit elements. The penalty was unapplied as he qualified in last position anyway.
3. ↑  Includes one point for fastest lap.
4. ↑  Racing Point was deducted 15 points after a protest from Renault was upheld regarding the legality of their car.