2013 Bahrain Grand Prix

Last updated

2013 Bahrain Grand Prix
Race 4 of 19 in the 2013 Formula One World Championship
  Previous race Next race  
Bahrain International Circuit--Grand Prix Layout.svg
Race details
Date21 April 2013
Official name 2013 Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix [1]
Location Bahrain International Circuit
Sakhir, Bahrain
Course Permanent racing facility
Course length 5.412 km (3.363 miles)
Distance 57 laps, 308.238 km (191.530 miles)
Weather Sunny
Attendance 73,000 (Weekend) [2] 31,000 (Race Day) [3]
Pole position
Driver Mercedes
Time 1:32.330
Fastest lap
Driver Flag of Germany.svg Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault
Time 1:36.961 on lap 55
Podium
First Red Bull-Renault
Second Lotus-Renault
Third Lotus-Renault
Lap leaders
  • 2013 Bahrain Grand Prix

The 2013 Bahrain Grand Prix (formally known as the 2013 Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix) [1] was a Formula One motor race held on 21 April 2013 at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain. [4] Contested over 57 laps, it was the fourth round of the 2013 season, and the ninth time that the Bahrain Grand Prix had been held as a round of the Formula One World Championship. The controversial race went ahead despite ongoing protests which had been taking place since the cancellation of the 2011 event.

Contents

Mercedes' Nico Rosberg started the race from pole. [5] Sebastian Vettel won the race, with Lotus F1 drivers Kimi Räikkönen and Romain Grosjean completing the podium, meaning that the top 3 finishers were identical to the 2012 event in the same order. [6]

This was also the last Bahrain Grand Prix to take place during the daytime, as the event switched to a night race from the 2014 race onwards.

Report

Background

Tyre supplier Pirelli had originally planned to bring their hard and soft compounds of tyre to the race, to be designated as the prime and the option respectively. [7] However, the teams experienced problems with the soft compound at the Chinese Grand Prix, with the tyres degrading after just seven laps, [8] which prompted Pirelli to alter their allocation for the Bahrain Grand Prix, changing the options from the soft compound to the medium. [9] Before the race, a minute of silence was held as a mark of respect for those who had lost their lives in the Boston Marathon bombings six days earlier.

This race also marked the 200th Grand Prix for Mark Webber. [10]

Anti-government protests

A Bahraini protester holding an anti-F1 sign Anti-F1 protester.JPG
A Bahraini protester holding an anti-F1 sign

In the context of the 2011 Bahraini uprising, public protests also occurred over the 2013 staging of the race, after the 2011 event was cancelled and the 2012 event went ahead despite efforts by demonstrators to disrupt the race. [11] According to Reuters, the race went ahead "largely unhindered" by the protests. Reflecting on the changes in the government strategy compared to 2012, they concluded that the public relations battle over this year's race had produced a stalemate, reflecting the situation in the opposition movement generally. [12]

Race

At the start, Nico Rosberg maintained the lead of the race, followed by Fernando Alonso, Sebastian Vettel, Paul di Resta and Felipe Massa. Vettel was able to pass Alonso already during the first lap, and Rosberg on the third, thus taking the lead. Alonso engaged, in turn, in a long duel with Rosberg, before passing him on lap 5. After a lap, the German was also overtaken by di Resta. Around the same time, Adrian Sutil, Jean-Éric Vergne and Giedo van der Garde were involved in a collision.

Fernando Alonso was forced to pit on lap seven to fix the DRS, which remained open on his car: he returned to the track seventeenth. The Spaniard tried to use the device again, which blocked again, forcing him to stop again one lap later.

Between laps 10 and 11, the best drivers changed tires. Paul di Resta now led, followed by Kimi Räikkönen and Nico Hülkenberg. Vettel returned to the lead definitively on lap 15 after overtaking Räikkönen and the first pit stop for di Resta. At this point, Vettel led Räikkönen, Mark Webber, Nico Rosberg, Jenson Button, Felipe Massa, Romain Grosjean, Sergio Pérez and di Resta. Räikkönen changed tires on lap 16, while, one lap later, Massa was forced to change tires again due to the dechapping of the right rear.

On lap 19, both Button and Grosjean passed Rosberg, who changed tires for the second time one lap later; Button and Grosjean engaged in a great duel, which ended with Button's pit stop on lap 21. Four laps later it was Vettel's turn, who maintained the lead of the race, followed by Grosjean, di Resta, Räikkönen, Webber, Pérez and Button. One lap later di Resta moved into second, passing Grosjean, who then pitted on lap 27. On laps 23 and 24, after a heated battle, the two McLaren drivers got the better of Nico Rosberg. Between laps 29 and 32, Jenson Button and Sergio Pérez then fought for fifth place, with the Englishman passing the Mexican and then resisting his counterattacks. However, the Englishman wore out his tyres and had to anticipate his third stop, like Rosberg.

On lap 34, Räikkönen gained second place after overtaking di Resta and pitted for the second time, a couple of laps before the Scotsman; from behind, Alonso appeared again in the points. Three laps later, Webber made his third pit stop, then on lap 42, it was also Vettel and Grosjean's turn. Vettel still led, followed by Kimi Räikkönen, Paul di Resta, Mark Webber and Romain Grosjean: one lap later, the Frenchman took a position from Webber.

On lap 44, Hamilton passed Button for sixth place; the McLaren driver was also then passed by Pérez and Alonso. The Spaniard, even without DRS, managed to get the better of Pérez on the main straight at the start of lap 47. The final laps were animated by the battle between Hamilton and Webber: the Englishman passed for the first time on lap 51, being passed again by the Australian a couple of laps later, before finally gaining the position, after repeated attacks, at the start of the final lap. Webber was also passed by Sergio Pérez, who had repassed Fernando Alonso on lap 54. In the meantime, during the fifty-second lap, Grosjean had taken the final spot podium at the expense of Paul di Resta.

Sebastian Vettel, Kimi Räikkönen and Romain Grosjean repeated the exact same podium as in 2012. This previously occurred in the 1964 and 1965 editions of the British Grand Prix (with Jim Clark first, Graham Hill second and John Surtees third) and in the 1998 and 1999 editions of the Spanish Grand Prix (with Mika Häkkinen first, David Coulthard second and Michael Schumacher third).

This was the second time a woman had taken to the Formula 1 podium to receive the Manufacturers' Award, and it was Gill Jones, Red Bull Racing’s Head of Trackside Electronics, stood. [13]

Classification

Qualifying

Pos.No.DriverConstructorQ1Q2Q3Grid
19 Flag of Germany.svg Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1:33.3641:32.8671:32.3301
21 Flag of Germany.svg Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1:33.3271:32.7461:32.5842
33 Flag of Spain.svg Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1:32.8781:33.3161:32.6673
410 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:33.4981:33.3461:32.7629 1
52 Flag of Australia (converted).svg Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 1:33.9661:33.0981:33.0787 2
64 Flag of Brazil.svg Felipe Massa Ferrari 1:33.7801:33.3581:33.2074
714 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes 1:33.7621:33.3351:33.2355
815 Flag of Germany.svg Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercedes 1:34.0481:33.3781:33.2466
97 Flag of Finland.svg Kimi Räikkönen Lotus-Renault 1:33.8271:33.1461:33.3278
105 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 1:34.0711:33.702no time10
118 Flag of France.svg Romain Grosjean Lotus-Renault 1:33.4981:33.76211
126 Flag of Mexico.svg Sergio Pérez McLaren-Mercedes 1:34.3101:33.91412
1319 Flag of Australia (converted).svg Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:34.1201:33.97413
1411 Flag of Germany.svg Nico Hülkenberg Sauber-Ferrari 1:34.4091:33.97614
1517 Flag of Finland.svg Valtteri Bottas Williams-Renault 1:34.4251:34.10515
1618 Flag of France.svg Jean-Éric Vergne Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:34.3141:34.28416
1716 Flag of Venezuela.svg Pastor Maldonado Williams-Renault 1:34.425 3 17
1812 Flag of Mexico.svg Esteban Gutiérrez Sauber-Ferrari 1:34.73022 4
1920 Flag of France.svg Charles Pic Caterham-Renault 1:35.28318
2022 Flag of France.svg Jules Bianchi Marussia-Cosworth 1:36.17819
2121 Flag of the Netherlands.svg Giedo van der Garde Caterham-Renault 1:36.30420
2223 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Max Chilton Marussia-Cosworth 1:36.47621
107% time: 1:39.379
Source: [5] [14]

Notes:

Race

Pos.No.DriverConstructorLapsTime/RetiredGridPoints
11 Flag of Germany.svg Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 571:36:00.498225
27 Flag of Finland.svg Kimi Räikkönen Lotus-Renault 57+9.111818
38 Flag of France.svg Romain Grosjean Lotus-Renault 57+19.5071115
414 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes 57+21.727512
510 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 57+35.230910
66 Flag of Mexico.svg Sergio Pérez McLaren-Mercedes 57+35.998128
72 Flag of Australia (converted).svg Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 57+37.24476
83 Flag of Spain.svg Fernando Alonso Ferrari 57+37.57434
99 Flag of Germany.svg Nico Rosberg Mercedes 57+41.12612
105 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 57+46.631101
1116 Flag of Venezuela.svg Pastor Maldonado Williams-Renault 57+1:06.45017
1211 Flag of Germany.svg Nico Hülkenberg Sauber-Ferrari 57+1:12.93314
1315 Flag of Germany.svg Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercedes 57+1:16.7196
1417 Flag of Finland.svg Valtteri Bottas Williams-Renault 57+1:21.51115
154 Flag of Brazil.svg Felipe Massa Ferrari 57+1:26.3644
1619 Flag of Australia (converted).svg Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso-Ferrari 56+1 lap13
1720 Flag of France.svg Charles Pic Caterham-Renault 56+1 lap18
1812 Flag of Mexico.svg Esteban Gutiérrez Sauber-Ferrari 56+1 lap22
1922 Flag of France.svg Jules Bianchi Marussia-Cosworth 56+1 lap19
2023 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Max Chilton Marussia-Cosworth 56+1 lap21
2121 Flag of the Netherlands.svg Giedo van der Garde Caterham-Renault 55+2 laps20
Ret18 Flag of France.svg Jean-Éric Vergne Toro Rosso-Ferrari 16Puncture damage16
Source: [6]

Championship standings after the race

See also

Footnotes

  1. As penalties are applied in the order that they are incurred, Webber was first moved from fifth to eighth. Hamilton's penalty was then applied, moving him from fourth to ninth, and Webber was moved back up to seventh on the grid. [14]

References

  1. 1 2 "2013 Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix". Formula1.com. Formula One Administration. Archived from the original on 1 April 2013. Retrieved 15 April 2013.
  2. "Trends in Bahrain". 22 April 2013.
  3. "Bahrain International Circuit - Breaking records". Archived from the original on 9 April 2018. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  4. "FIA Formula One calendar". FIA.com. Fedération Internationale de l'Automobile. Archived from the original on 8 February 2013. Retrieved 15 April 2013.
  5. 1 2 Beer, Matt (20 April 2013). "Bahrain GP: Nico Rosberg takes surprise pole for Mercedes". Autosport.com. Haymarket Publications . Retrieved 20 April 2013.
  6. 1 2 "2013 Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix — results". Formula1.com. Formula One Administrations. 21 April 2013. Archived from the original on 23 April 2013. Retrieved 21 April 2013.
  7. Collantine, Keith (13 February 2013). "Pirelli changes tyre choices for Australia and Bahrain". F1 Fanatic. Keith Collantine. Retrieved 18 April 2013.
  8. Collantine, Keith (14 April 2013). "2013 Chinese Grand Prix tyre strategies and pit stops". F1 Fanatic. Keith Collantine. Retrieved 18 April 2013.
  9. Collantine, Keith (16 April 2013). "Pirelli swaps soft tyre for medium in Bahrain". F1 Fanatic. Keith Collantine. Retrieved 18 April 2013.
  10. Alan Baldwin (22 April 2013). "Bahrain looks long term with F1 race". Euronews . Reuters. Archived from the original on 29 April 2013. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
  11. The Independent
  12. Alexander Dziadosz (21 April 2013). "Bahrain Grand Prix 2013: Crisis Endures Despite Rulers Avoiding Fiasco". Huffington Post. Reuters. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
  13. "Meet the women to have stood on the Formula 1 podium". Femalesinmotorsport.com. Retrieved 18 May 2025.
  14. 1 2 "Bahrain GP: final starting grid". Autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. 20 April 2013. Retrieved 21 April 2013.
  15. Straw, Edd; Beer, Matt (20 April 2013). "Bahrain GP: Lewis Hamilton gets five-place grid penalty over gearbox". Autosport.com. Haymarket Publications . Retrieved 20 April 2013.
  16. Collantine, Keith (14 April 2013). "Webber handed grid penalty for Vergne collision". F1 Fanatic. Keith Collantine. Retrieved 15 April 2013.
  17. "Esteban Gutierrez given five-place grid penalty in Bahrain for causing crash in China". Sky Sports. 14 April 2013. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  18. 1 2 "Bahrain 2013 - Championship • STATS F1". www.statsf1.com. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
Previous race:
2013 Chinese Grand Prix
FIA Formula One World Championship
2013 season
Next race:
2013 Spanish Grand Prix
Previous race:
2012 Bahrain Grand Prix
Bahrain Grand Prix Next race:
2014 Bahrain Grand Prix