3) Sakhir Grand Prix
Following one of the most dramatic weeks in recent F1 history, the Sakhir Grand Prix did not relent, and produced a race that kept viewers on their toes for its entirety. Grosjean’s horror crash and subsequent release from hospital, Hamilton contracting Covid, drivers moving to fill up seats all over the shop, and Mick Schumacher being crowned F2 champion were just a few of the barrage of news stories in the week leading up to the first ever F1 race at the Bahrain outer circuit, a track its fair to say was not one of the new additions that had sparked a great deal of excitement or anticipation. But a perfect storm of circumstances came together to create a race for the history books. On his Mercedes debut George Russell snatched the lead from Bottas, taking the inside line on the first corner. In a moment of cruel irony Verstappen backed out of a Perez-Bottas sandwich on the run into turn 4, a move that wouldn’t have crossed his mind a couple of years ago. Yet it was this sensible thinking that in turn forced him to run wide and crash to avoid Charles Leclerc bombing down the inside and making contact with Perez. With Leclerc and Verstappen, two of the most fancied podium sitters, out, and Perez stone cold last they race was blown right open.
Russell had full command of the situation, until lap 59 when his replacement Jack Aitkin crashed, bringing out the safety car. Its hard to say whether this or their mess up at Germany 2019 was a more embarrassing pit disaster for Mercedes, but following one of the worst double-stack stops ever, by the time the safety car came in their two cars were 4thand 5th. Russell quickly dispatched Bottas with a breath-taking overtake that demonstrated his skill and confidence in the W11, swiftly making his way up the order to 2nd. But then tragedy struck again – a puncture with just 10 laps to go demoted him to 14th. Taking fans along with him for one of the greatest emotional rollercoasters an F1 race has provided in recent memory, George scored his first points with P9 and fastest lap at the chequered flag, but it was a bittersweet achievement and he was understandably devastated. However, this left the door open for one of F1’s greatest fairy-tale moments. Having been dropped by his team for 2021, Sergio Perez came home to claim his maiden F1 win after a record breaking 190 race starts. It was a tearful prize ceremony, as Estaban Ocon stepped on the podium for the first time and Lance Stroll came home 3rd to give Racing Point their first double podium. It was a relentless race that possibly has changed the careers of its two stars forever, with Perez earning a seat at Red Bull for 2021 not long after, and Russell now being seen as the clear choice to fill either of the Mercedes seats when Hamilton or Bottas say goodbye to the team.
