Bahrain Grand Prix LIVE: Latest F1 updates as Charles Leclerc loses victory to Lewis Hamilton after late drama
Follow the latest from the Bahrain Grand Prix
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Your support makes all the difference.Follow the latest updates live from the Bahrain Grand Prix as Charles Leclerc starts from pole position for the first time in his career.
The Ferrari new boy stunned teammate Sebastian Vettel on Saturday with a new lap record around the Bahrain International Circuit, leading a Ferrari one-two as they locked out the front row. That left Lewis Hamilton to contend with third place at a track that he has not won at for the last three years, and with both he and Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas off the pace, it could be a painful day for Mercedes.
Max Verstappen leads the best of the rest in his Red Bull, while McLaren got both their cars into Q3 for the first time since Malaysia 2017 in what could be a successful weekend for Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris. Follow the live action below.
When is it?
The Bahrain Grand Prix takes place across the weekend of 29-31 March, with the race itself on Sunday 31 March.
What time does it start?
Lights out is scheduled for 4:10pm BST (6:10pm local).
Where can I watch it?
The race will be shown live on Sky Sports F1 from 2:30pm. Highlights will be shown on Channel 4 from 9pm.
Sky Sports F1 will also be showing every practice session as well as qualifying live throughout the weekend.
Times
First practice: Friday 11am-12:30pm
Second practice: Friday 3pm-4.30pm
Third practice: Saturday 12pm-1pm
Qualifying: Saturday 3pm-4pm
Race: 4:10pm-6:10pm
Grid
1 Charles Leclerc (Mon) Ferrari 1min 27.866secs
2 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Ferrari 1:28.160
3 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) Mercedes GP 1:28.190
4 Valtteri Bottas (Fin) Mercedes GP 1:28.256
5 Max Verstappen (Ned) Red Bull 1:28.752
6 Kevin Magnussen (Den) Haas F1 1:28.757
7 Carlos Sainz (Spa) McLaren 1:28.813
8 Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Alfa Romeo Racing 1:29.022
9 Lando Norris (Gbr) McLaren 1:29.043
10 Daniel Ricciardo (Aus) Renault 1:29.488
11 Romain Grosjean (Fra) Haas F1 1:29.015 + three-place grid penalty for blocking
12 Alexander Albon (Tha) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:29.513
13 Pierre Gasly (Fra) Red Bull 1:29.526
14 Sergio Perez (Mex) Racing Point 1:29.756
15 Daniil Kvyat (Rus) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:29.854
16 Antonio Giovinazzi (Ita) Alfa Romeo Racing 1:30.026
17 Nico Hulkenberg (Ger) Renault 1:30.034
18 Lance Stroll (Can) Racing Point 1:30.217
19 George Russell (Gbr) Williams 1:31.759
20 Robert Kubica (Pol) Williams 1:31.799
Lap 26:
1. Leclerc
2. Vettel
3. Hamilton
4. Bottas
5. Verstappen
6. Hulkenberg
7. Norris
8. Raikkonen
9. Gasly
10. Perez
Lap 27: The youngest driver on the grid gets by the oldest as Norris slides beneath Raikkonen at turn one, and just fends off a response with a helpful dose of DRS into turn four. That puts the McLaren up to seventh, and he's having to fight a lone battle with Sainz still circulating in last after that early contact. Meanwhile, Ferrari look like they're getting tyres ready, which means the second stops aren't far away. It was believed that the window would be from lap 35, but Verstappen's early stop - which Christian Horner has confirmed was due to a slow puncture - has brought that forwards.
Lap 30: Ricciardo has made his planned one stop and is fighting his way back through the field, racing past Magnussen to take 11th. He's looking very handy for a good haul of points, but he's definitely in a race with his teammate as Hulkenberg is 22 seconds up the road with a stop to come.
Lap 32: Verstappen is going to be furious. Stroll, a lap down and in 17th, is fighting the young Dutchman and passes to un-lap himself. Both Kubica and Sainz behind are looking racey too, and Verstappen won't like what's going on around him.
Lap 33: Red Bull are the first to stop again as Verstappen takes himself out of that danger zone with his second stop. Hulkenberg does the same, and he comes out behind teammate Ricciardo as well as Perez but just 2.3s separates the trio.
Lap 34: None of the front-runners seem concerned by Verstappen as they stay out for now, so let's take stock of where we are.
Leclerc is leading Vettel by a healthy 8.6s, with Hamilton a few seconds further behind.
Lap 35: And now Hamilton pits! That will get Ferraris attention as he pits from third and releases Bottas. Surely Vettel will come in next time by?
Lap 36: Vettel does pit! Hamilton is on the charge but has traffic to deal with, and a 2.3s pit stop from Ferrari is handy for Vettel that keeps him in front of Hamilton - just. However, they're separated by just a second behind.
Lap 37: Leclerc pits and retains the lead thanks to his healthy gap, but behind it's getting really tasty! Vettel and Hamilton are catching Bottas - who hasn't pitted - and Hamilton attempts to go around the outside of turn four. Vettel fights back...and just holds on to the position!
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