Starry, starry night…

Just what else does Sakhir hold for us? Well, if an enthralling Bahrain Grand Prix is anything to go by, lots more as we tackle Bahrain International Circuit’s ultra-fast ‘outer circuit’ for the very first time. In this week’s race preview we look ahead to the Sakhir Grand Prix with the help of Carlos Sainz, Lando Norris and McLaren F1 Team Principal Andreas Seidl. We’ll also shine a light on what you should watch out for and serve up another helping of giveaway goodness – this time with an altogether festive vibe.

How to follow

What they say

“The team had a good outing last weekend that saw us score a decent amount of points. I felt comfortable in the car since Friday and we carried that feeling all weekend. The comeback from P15 was great, but I really look forward to a weekend with no unfortunate surprises like in quali and especially no dangerous events like the one we saw on Sunday with Romain.

“The outer circuit in Bahrain is not your typical F1 track. Even though we just raced here, we’re going to have to adjust the set-up quite a bit for this new challenge. We never really race on circuits with mainly long straights and only a few corners. It’s going to be interesting to see how this plays out in F1 cars as I’d expect there to be consistent flat-out racing. Hopefully we can get to grips with things quickly and start the weekend strong.

“I’m very happy to see that Romain is doing well and has been discharged from hospital, but saddened to read the news yesterday about Lewis testing positive for covid. We’ll miss both of them this weekend at the track and I really hope they have a swift recovery.”

“We’re racing under the lights again in Bahrain, but with a completely new track layout. The outer circuit is definitely going to be different to what we’re used to in F1 which is exciting. It could be quite a crazy race with not so many corners, several long straights and lap-times of less than a minute. I’m sure it’ll provide some great racing during the 87 laps.

“We had a good race last weekend that showed the hard work everyone in the team is putting in both at track and back home. We’ve got two more races to go, so we’re going to knuckle down, keep focusing on ourselves and keep pushing hard to perform as best as we possibly can.

“It's really great to see that Romain is recovering well. I’m also wishing Lewis all the best and a quick recovery after hearing the news that he tested positive for coronavirus. Hopefully, they’ll both be back racing soon.”

“First of all, it’s great to see the messages from Romain and that he’s doing ok after his accident last Sunday. Everyone at McLaren is also wishing Lewis a speedy recovery after testing positive for covid.

“It’s week two of the triple-header as we stay in Bahrain but face a completely new track. It’s important for us to remain focused with no time to be complacent, as we turn our full attention to racing on the outer circuit in Bahrain this weekend. The circuit looks to have interesting characteristics that differ from what we raced on last time out, with fast straights and fewer corners. The track’s short length and high-speed nature could see lap times of sub-60 seconds, which is something we’re not accustomed to in Formula 1. This also comes with the challenge of adjusting the set-up to find the optimum level of downforce for such a high-speed track.

“Our priorities remain the same as we head into the final two races of the season: continue to focus on ourselves, optimise the cars’ performance, stay on top of reliability and take advantage of any opportunities that present themselves.”

What the stats say

Carlos finally bagged his first F1 points score in Bahrain last weekend, having come so close on previous occasions. Another helping of points certainly wouldn’t go amiss and neither would Lando maintaining his rich vein of form here. If you include his 2018 F2 feature race win and fourth-place finish in the sprint race, he’s now on a run of four consecutive top-six finishes at Bahrain International Circuit.

Given F1 has never raced around the outer circuit, stats are unsurprisingly few and far between. However, the circuit’s high-speed layout and 3.5-km length mean a record that’s stood for 46 years is very likely to be broken this weekend. In 1974, Niki Lauda set the fastest pole lap in history, lapping Dijon-Prenois – home of the French Grand Prix at the time – in 58.79 seconds. Simulations suggest qualifying times this weekend will be less than 55 seconds, which means Bahrain’s outer circuit is set to be the stage for the lowest pole time ever seen.

What to watch out for

Same location, same kind of race. Right? Wrong. We’re going to see a very different race to the Bahrain Grand Prix. The new track layout effectively turns the circuit into a collection of long straights punctuated by heavy braking zones. The Bahrain International Circuit we’ve grown accustomed to over the years is about to become very Monza-esque.

Expect to see teams running less downforce than last weekend and plenty of slipstreaming, especially in qualifying as drivers search for a tow. It’s likely to be one of the most stressful and exciting hours of qualifying this season, and there should be plenty of overtaking in the race. The short circuit length will compress the competitive order – times will be even tighter and that will only add to the jeopardy in qualifying. Every tenth of a second counts in F1 but, this weekend, a few milliseconds might just prove be the difference on more than one occasion. The later start times also throw another curve ball into the mix, as cooler track temperatures could make getting the best out of the tyres even more of a challenge.

What to wear

The eagle eyed among you will have spotted Carlos and Lando sporting the rather fetching Special Edition Bahrain McLaren Cap last weekend. A combination of bright white and delicate flashes of red, these caps are absolute stunners and, for those of you about to head into the depths of winter, they’re sure to prove a sound investment when the sun returns and temperatures start to rise. 

Plus one

On the first day of Christmas my true love sent to me… a luggage and accessories collection from TUMI.

That’s right folks, Christmas is almost upon us and we couldn’t resist putting a McLaren spin on it. With the help of our partners we’ve put together our biggest-ever giveaway. Check out our Yuletide competition page for a full rundown of the awesome prizes up for grabs and the all-important details on how to enter. Oh, and if you want to double your chances of winning, make sure you’ve completed your McLaren App profile.

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