Formula 1: 2018 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix results – Sebastian Vettel wins
By Asher Fair
Scuderia Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel dominated the second race of the 2018 Formula 1 season, which was the Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix.
For the second race in a row to open up the 2018 Formula 1 season, Scuderia Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel took the checkered flag from the pole position to extend his lead in the drivers standings. He held off Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport’s Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton in 2nd and 3rd place, respectively, as Mercedes gained on Ferrari in the constructor standings.
Vettel won the 2018 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix around the 15-turn, 5.412-kilometer (3.363-mile) Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain by 0.699 seconds over Bottas, making him two for two to start the 2018 season after he also won the season opener, the Australian Grand Prix.
Bottas was reeling in Vettel toward the end of the race, but he was unable to make the pass and had to settle for 2nd place ahead of his teammate Hamilton in 3rd. Scuderia Toro Rosso’s Pierre Gasly finished the race in a career-high 4th place after never having finished a race in the top 11 in six career starts coming into this weekend’s race.
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Aston Martin Red Bull Racing’s Daniel Ricciardo was forced to retire toward the beginning of the race after his power shut off, and his teammate Max Verstappen was forced to retire shortly thereafter after a puncture.
Several laps later, Vettel’s teammate Kimi Raikkonen was forced to retire after an unsafe release from the pits left a crew member on the ground after being hit, and it left him with three new tires as opposed to four.
The 57-lap race featured three lead changes among three different drivers. Aside of Vettel, who led a race-high 49 laps, both Bottas and Hamilton also led laps throughout the race.
Here are the full results from the 2018 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix at Bahrain.
| Rank | Driver | Car, Team, Engine |
| 1 | Sebastian Vettel | #5, Scuderia Ferrari, Ferrari |
| 2 | Valtteri Bottas | #77, Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport, Mercedes |
| 3 | Lewis Hamilton | #44, Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport, Mercedes |
| 4 | Pierre Gasly | #10, Scuderia Toro Rosso, Honda |
| 5 | Kevin Magnussen | #20, Haas, Ferrari |
| 6 | Nico Hulkenberg | #27, Renault Sport, Renault |
| 7 | Fernando Alonso | #14, McLaren, Renault |
| 8 | Stoffel Vandoorne | #2, McLaren, Renault |
| 9 | Marcus Ericsson | #9, Alfa Romeo Sauber, Ferrari |
| 10 | Esteban Ocon | #31, Sahara Force India, Mercedes |
| 11 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | #55, Renault Sport, Renault |
| 12 | Sergio Perez | #11, Sahara Force India, Mercedes |
| 13 | Brendon Hartley | #28, Scuderia Toro Rosso, Honda |
| 14 | Charles Leclerc | #16, Alfa Romeo Sauber, Ferrari |
| 15 | Romain Grosjean | #8, Haas, Ferrari |
| 16 | Lance Stroll | #18, Williams Martini Racing, Mercedes |
| 17 | Sergey Sirotkin | #35, Williams Martini Racing, Mercedes |
| 18 | Kimi Raikkonen | #7, Scuderia Ferrari, Ferrari |
| 19 | Max Verstappen | #33, Aston Martin Red Bull Racing, Renault |
| 20 | Daniel Ricciardo | #3, Aston Martin Red Bull Racing, Renault |
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Be sure not to miss the next Formula 1 race, which is the Chinese Grand Prix. That race is set to be held at the Shanghai International Circuit in Jiading, Shanghai, China. That race is set to take place next Sunday, April 15th, and it is set to be broadcast live on ESPN2 starting at 2:00 am ET.