2023 Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix highlights

Haas F1 Team finished with Kevin Magnussen 13th and Nico Hulkenberg 15th at the 2023 Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix, held Sunday at the Bahrain International Circuit.

Hulkenberg lined up from 10th place on Pirelli P Zero Red soft tires while Magnussen was the sole driver on the grid to opt for White hard tires – the Dane from 17th. Both drivers relinquished track position on the opening lap, with Hulkenberg suffering from minor contact and dropping to 15th, while Magnussen brought up the rear on his off-set strategy.

Hulkenberg came in on lap 12, the German switching to hard rubber, before another stop on lap 27, which included a front-wing change. Magnussen pitted on lap 15 for more hard tires before switching to softs on lap 30. Both drivers took the opportunity of a virtual safety car period, caused by the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc coming to a halt, to pit for a third time on lap 40, both taking on softs.

Magnussen greeted the checkered flag in 13th place, while Hulkenberg finished his first race for MoneyGram Haas F1 Team in 15th position.

Up front, Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen opened the 2023 season with the victory, ahead of teammate Sergio Perez, with Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso completing the podium.

Kevin Magnussen

I was pleasantly surprised with our race pace. We started P17 but still made up a few positions, and it felt like the pace was all right regarding where we came from. I think we were struggling a lot in testing, and on Friday, with tire wear and in the race, it seemed like we made a step, which is positive. It wasn’t the weekend we dreamed of, but we learned a lot.

Nico Hulkenberg

It was a tricky race – especially the first half. I had contact with someone on lap one, which I didn’t notice, which was a bit frustrating. I had quite a lot missing from the front wing and lost a lot of load and grip, making the first half of the race very tough. We tried to hang in there, but I was going through my tires like a hot knife through butter, so we decided there was no point in continuing like that, and we pitted for a new front wing. We did a race distance and got lots of good information, so we’ll take that.

Guenther Steiner, Team Principal, Haas F1 Team

The result wasn’t what we expected – Nico didn’t have a great start losing a front wing endplate, and Kevin was, in hindsight, on the wrong tire at the start. I think the race pace was better than we expected, and that’s what we take away from here – there is good potential in the car. If everything went perfectly, we qualified in the top 10 and maybe could have been in the top eight. It didn’t go our way in the race, but we learned a lot and now know that we’re in the ballpark on race pace like everybody else. We go to Jeddah well prepared and will see what we can do there – I  think points are possible.

Haas F1 Team best pictures:

BAHRAIN INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT, BAHRAIN – MARCH 02: Guenther Steiner, Team Principal, Haas F1 Team during the Bahrain GP at Bahrain International Circuit on Thursday March 02, 2023 in Sakhir, Bahrain. (Photo by Mark Sutton / LAT Images)

BAHRAIN INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT, BAHRAIN – MARCH 02: Nico Hulkenberg, Haas F1 Team Kevin Magnussen, Haas F1 Team during the Bahrain GP at Bahrain International Circuit on Thursday March 02, 2023 in Sakhir, Bahrain. (Photo by Mark Sutton / LAT Images)

BAHRAIN INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT, BAHRAIN – MARCH 04: Nico Hulkenberg, Haas F1 Team during the Bahrain GP at Bahrain International Circuit on Saturday March 04, 2023 in Sakhir, Bahrain. (Photo by Andy Hone / LAT Images)

BAHRAIN INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT, BAHRAIN – MARCH 05: Nico Hulkenberg, Haas F1 Team, on the grid during the Bahrain GP at Bahrain International Circuit on Sunday March 05, 2023 in Sakhir, Bahrain. (Photo by Andy Hone / LAT Images)

BAHRAIN INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT, BAHRAIN – MARCH 05: Mechanics bring Nico Hulkenberg, Haas VF-23, to the grid during the Bahrain GP at Bahrain International Circuit on Sunday March 05, 2023 in Sakhir, Bahrain. (Photo by Andy Hone / LAT Images)

BAHRAIN INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT, BAHRAIN – MARCH 05: Kevin Magnussen, Haas F1 Team, on the grid during the Bahrain GP at Bahrain International Circuit on Sunday March 05, 2023 in Sakhir, Bahrain. (Photo by Andy Hone / LAT Images)

1. Previous
2. 1
3. 2
4. 3
5. 4
6. 5
7. 6
8. 7
9. 8
10. 9
11. 10
12. 11