2023 Bahrain Grand Prix

## Lap Leaders

The **2023 Bahrain Grand Prix** (officially the **Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2023**) was the first race of the 2023 FIA Formula One World Championship, held at Bahrain International Circuit on the weekend of March 3 to March 5, 2023.

## Background

### Entrants

The drivers and teams were the same as the season entry list with no additional stand-in drivers for the race.

### Tyre choices

Tyre supplier Pirelli brought the C1, C2, and C3 tyre compounds (designated hard, medium, and soft, respectively) for teams to use at the event.

### Track changes

The third DRS activation point was moved farther ahead, being positioned 250 metres (820 ft) after turn 15.

## Qualifying

### Qualifying Report

Qualifying was held on March 4, 2023 at 18:00 local time (UTC+3).

## Race

### Race Report

The race was held on March 5, 2023, starting at 18:00 local time (UTC+3).

Max Verstappen led comfortably from the start, only losing the lead briefly during the first round of pit stops. Sergio Pérez was slow away at the start and lost second place to a fast starting Charles Leclerc. Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton battled on the run down to turn 4, Alonso was hit by his teammate Lance Stroll, causing both Aston Martins to lose positions. Alonso came out on top in a wheel-to-wheel battle with George Russell on lap 13, both drivers lost out in the pit stops to Valtteri Bottas in the Alfa Romeo.

Oscar Piastri retired 13 laps into his Formula One debut with an electrical failure. Meanwhile his teammate Lando Norris also had engine issues, this time with the hydraulics, requiring six pit stops to manage the problem. Esteban Ocon picked up a five second penalty for lining up in his grid spot incorrectly. He did not serve the full five seconds in the pits, and was given a subsequent ten second penalty, and then a further five second penalty for speeding in the pit lane.

Pérez made it past Leclerc on lap 26, with Red Bull Racing the only front running team to use the soft tyre for both the first two tyre stints. After the second round of pit stops, Stroll, who was racing with a broken wrist and toe, overtook Russell as the latter came out of the pits on cold tyres, with Stroll having pitted a lap earlier. Alonso and Hamilton engaged in a battle for fifth place, Alonso overtook Hamilton into turn 4 on lap 37 before a snap of oversteer on the corner exit for Alonso allowed Hamilton back past. One lap later Alonso pulled off an overtake at turn 10.

Leclerc's race came to an end on lap 40, with his car suffering a mechanical failure while running in third, bringing out the virtual safety car. Alonso overtook Carlos Sainz using DRS on the run down to turn 11 on lap 45. Meanwhile, Pierre Gasly overtook Alexander Albon for ninth place, having started from last. Zhou Guanyu pitted on the penultimate lap for soft tyres, and set the fastest lap of the race on the final lap.

Verstappen took his first win at the Bahrain International Circuit by almost twelve seconds from his teammate Pérez. Alonso finished third, his first podium since the 2021 Qatar Grand Prix and Aston Martin's first since the 2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

## Notes

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lando Norris and Logan Sargeant set identical lap times in Q1. Norris advanced to Q2 as he set his time earlier.
2. ↑ Nico Hülkenberg received a 15-second time penalty for exceeding track limits. His final position was not affected by the penalty.