With Formula 1 returning to its pre-season testing venue, Motorsport Week unpicks five key talking points for the 2025 Bahrain Grand Prix.
F1 returns to the Bahrain International Circuit almost two months on from pre-season testing, with temperatures significantly warmer than the end of February.
The second leg of the first triple-header in 2025 promises to be a more entertaining affair than Japan’s one-stop procession, with the heat, coupled with Bahrain’s abrasive surface, almost guaranteeing a two-stop race.
But what will this mean for the pecking order in Sakhir, and what should we expect from Bahrain?
READ MORE – McLaren, Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari set for F1 Bahrain GP contest
Will McLaren get back on top?
McLaren opened its account in 2025 with two pole positions and two GP victories across Australia and China with Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri sharing the spoils evenly.
That run was expected to continue in Japan, but Max Verstappen surprised everyone by pipping McLaren to pole and victory.
A lack of tyre degradation nullified McLaren’s advantage at Suzuka, but that shouldn’t be the case in Bahrain.
McLaren has a devastating long-run pace in pre-season testing, and its tyre preservation traits should be an advantage this weekend, but Bahrain has often been a bogey track for McLaren and Norris is downplaying expectations.
“I think our advantage will be lessened compared to previous weekends,” he told select media, including Motorsport Week on Thursday. “A trickier track, a slower speed circuit which has not been as favourable for us.”
Will Verstappen maintain his challenge?
Verstappen’s victory last time out means he sits just behind Norris, by one point, atop the Drivers’ standings, but the Dutchman fears Bahrain will be a tougher test.
Citing the temperatures and abrasive asphalt, Verstappen said, “on paper, from what we’ve seen, you know, so far this season, that’s not as ideal for us compared to McLaren.”
Christian Horner also envisaged this weekend being a tough ask for Red Bull to repeat its Suzuka supremacy, saying, “McLaren in Bahrain will be very strong. “It’s a track that should theoretically play to their strengths. They have the quickest car at the moment. I think that we’re going to need to fight a bit to beat them.”
Still, that doesn’t mean The Flying Dutchman should be counted out, given the performances he’s managed to drag out of the RB21 so far this season. Verstappen is keeping himself in the hunt and is thoroughly expected to clip at McLaren’s heels as much as possible this weekend.
Can Tsunoda make a step?
Yuki Tsunoda got through his maiden weekend with Red Bull relatively unscathed. Verstappen taking the pole and race victory at Tsunoda’s home circuit exposed his Q2 exit and 12th place finish slightly, but there are reasons to be positive.
Tsunoda was closer to Verstappen through practice, and a wet-weather lenient set-up cost him in qualifying and the race in Japan. Still, he was one of the few to make forward progress in the GP itself.
With a race weekend under his belt at Red Bull and a lack of serious alarm bells ringing, Tsunoda arrives in Bahrain with a bit more knowledge on how to extract the best from the RB21.
“Bahrain is a track we all know very well and will be totally different conditions to Japan, so I need to get up to speed quickly and ensure qualifying goes well this week,” he said. “I think if I can understand our tyre prep better then I can put the car in a better place for race day and hopefully score the points and performance I know we are capable of.”
Will Ferrari’s upgrades work?
Ferrari has had an underwhelming start to the season, with Charles Leclerc conceding, “we were a little bit disappointed to see that we had done a step back at the beginning of this year.”
35 points from the opening three rounds of the season isn’t what Leclerc or Lewis Hamilton wanted from the start of 2025, but there’s some reason for optimism in Bahrain with a new floor for the SF-25.
“We’ve got a new floor this weekend so I’m excited,” Hamilton said. “The team has worked really hard to bring, as teams do they work incredibly hard to be able to bring upgrades so to have that here, the track that we tested at and to have more knowledge about the car and how to attract more from it I feel really positive going into the weekend.”
Whether that can bring Ferrari closer to the likes of McLaren is another matter entirely, but Hamilton is hopeful “this weekend it’s a step forward for us definitely. It’s not necessarily closing the gap but it’s going towards closing the gap.”
Can Alpine get off the mark?
Only one team remains scoreless so far, and based on pre-season testing, nobody would have guessed that team was going to be Alpine.
Alpine looked poised to front the midfield after February’s action, but that has yet to come true in racing conditions, with Williams, Haas and Racing Bulls stealing a march on the Anglo-French squad.
So, can returning to Bahrain help get Alpine off the mark? Pierre Gasly certainly hopes so.
“I’m looking forward to returning to Bahrain this weekend, where we performed well during pre-season testing,” he said. “Bahrain is a track that has intense tyre wear, but we know what to expect after the three days of testing in February even with this year’s unique, cold conditions. We’re expecting a much hotter, more normal weekend this time around and hope to build on our pre-season pace and come away with a top-10 result.”
Alpine will face strong opposition from the likes of Williams, a team hoping to validate its year-on-year progress in the Bahrain heat.
As ever, the midfield picture is fascinating and one of many narratives sure to compel viewers this weekend.
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