Grand Prix thread Rolex Sakhir Grand Prix 2020 - The Oval

87 laps of the Bahrain International Circuit's 3.543-kilometre Outer Track layout

04th Dec Practice 1 13:30 - 15:00
04th Dec Practice 2 17:30 - 19:00
05th Dec Practice 3 14:00 - 15:00
05th Dec Qualifying 17:00 - 18:00
06th Dec Race 17:10 - 19:10

All times UK times.
Poll closes a little before Quali.

 

I am looking forward to this one. I hope George has a good clean race and does a great job. It would be nice for him to beat Bottas but that is a huge ask.
Plus other new drivers and a new almost oval circuit that could be a very interesting race.
Setup could be very critical and George might struggle with that as well as learning the cars feel.

 

Lewis Ham..... wait. Sorry, reflex action.

 

On a serious note I’ll wait for the practice sessions and see what sort of shape George is in.

 

For George, big opportunity, how he handles that pressure is going to be almost as interesting/important as the result. If he can get within 2-3 tenths of Bottas in quali, which will probably be enough for top 4 on the grid (minimum), and convert that into a top 5 finish, he's probably done enough.

Closer to Bottas, on the podium, I think will look very promising. Beat Bottas....

Another factor will be how well he integrates into the squad. If he can impress them, be a team player, give good feedback, etc, it all counts.

As for the other newbies, Fittipaldi isn't terribly highly rated, if he's close to KMag that's going to be used as a stick to beat KMag and Grosjean's performances for years to come. Similarly, Aitken could put a solid dent in Latifi's reputation.

 

Taking a punt on Russell. Why not hey?

 

I feel for Latifi, he had that 20th in the bag.

 

Surely Russell will move off the bottom of the drivers standings this weekend unless he retires and both Aitken and Fittipaldi get top 11

 

Well, he's crashed every time he's looked like scoring points so far, so the pressure is on.

 

While we don't know fuel loads George seems to be doing well so far.

 

Well that went OK!

 

Duck number 1 broken. Tops his first practice session.

 

Amazing for George. Just hope team orders don't spoil it.

 

Great start, but it's tomorrow that counts. But couldn't ask for a better start... So....

 

Love how he beats Bottas straight away with no testing or anything just shows how poor Bottas is though he is just a number 2. Mercedes should put a faster driver in that car but in that car.

 

Too many variables to really know what the times mean yet. Tomorrow will be a true indication, but I have a feeling he'll do alright.

Do agree that the second Merc seat deserves a hungrier driver though.

 

The pressure is on Bottas and its clear to see

 

Grand slam for George?

 

Bottas didn't manage a lap on softs because he couldn't keep within track limits! So his listed time was on hards.
Impressive from George.
I wonder how watertight Bottas's contract is?

 

Let's get tomorrow out of the way... Then we can plot the demise of Bottas.

Brilliant start though. If he wins this weekend, they have to seriously consider making some kind of swap deal. Throw in a set of front brake ducts to sweeten the deal.