The Components 1 2023 season begins this weekend with the Bahrain Grand Prix; all of the motion stay on Sky Sports activities F1 – monitor periods start with observe at 11.30am on Friday, qualifying and race each stay at 3pm on Saturday and Sunday respectively
Components 1 might be heading into the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix with a mixed-up pecking order – and you’ll watch all of the motion stay on Sky Sports activities F1 as a 2023 marketing campaign filled with twists and turns begins.
Three months after drivers final went wheel to wheel to shut the 2022 season, F1 is again and Sky Sports activities F1 is your own home for all 23 races, beginning with the opener from Friday’s observe by way of to Sunday’s Grand Prix.
Qualifying (Saturday) and the race (Sunday) are each stay at 3pm, with in depth build-up from our group of specialists in Bahrain.
On the similar Sakhir circuit the place pre-season kickstarted F1 2023 final week, there’s paddock consensus over who arrives because the group and driver to beat: Purple Bull, and Max Verstappen.
Contemporary off a title-winning marketing campaign that noticed them declare 17 of twenty-two races, Purple Bull seem to have taken one other step ahead with their 2023 automobile whereas Verstappen, who sealed a record-breaking 15 victories final 12 months, was uncharacteristically bullish as he goes chasing a 3rd straight drivers’ title.
“Our aim is to win this weekend after which win the championship,” mentioned Verstappen. “We have improved.”
From the three days of testing, Ferrari gave the impression to be the one group who might problem Purple Bull’s uncooked tempo, though the Scuderia have an all-new automobile idea and that may inevitably include preliminary teething issues.
Sergio Perez places within the quickest lap of testing on the C4 tyres in his Purple Bull
“I really feel we have some work to do,” Charles Leclerc, who completed a distant second behind Verstappen final season, mentioned. “Purple Bull appears to be very sturdy.”
Behind them, the image appears much less clear, with loads of adjustments.
Mercedes, with whom Lewis Hamilton hopes to assert a report eighth championship this 12 months, haven’t made the progress anticipated of them after a nicely below-par 2022, whereas Aston Martin have been the pre-season darlings and might be proper within the combine with the same old high three.
Ted Kravitz is within the paddock forward of the 2023 Components 1 season as he analyses the important thing moments from the third and last day of pre-season testing in Bahrain
Mercedes and McLaren in bother? The pecking order predictions
Forward of the opener, our Sky Sports activities F1 pundits out in Bahrain provided their very own takes on the pecking order…
Sky Sports activities F1’s Ted Kravitz affords his pecking-order reasonings
“In tenth, I believe it is Williams. I believe it is a automobile that does not have the issues of final 12 months nevertheless it nonetheless lacks some aero sophistication that we see on different automobiles across the place. Alex Albon will do his typical wonderful issues, Logan Sargeant seems like a correct Components 1 driver, however I nonetheless assume they’re lagging behind.
There is a group of Haas, McLaren and Alfa Romeo who’re forward of AlphaTauri we expect. AlphaTauri say we do not assume we have a very quick automobile, however they’re actually dependable and so they’ve actually acquired a few fast drivers. On their day, they may publish a quick time. I do assume AlphaTauri are forward of Williams, possibly by an honest quantity and never too removed from these in entrance of them.
“Subsequent, all of it relies on how badly you assume McLaren are doing. They’ve gone a distinct course, the automobile is just not fast however McLaren say it will likely be fast in a while. In the mean time, there’s a hazard that McLaren might be the eighth quickest group. It is actually a hazard.
Ted Kravitz ranks the F1 groups’ possibilities from worst to greatest after this 12 months’s testing
“Haas assume they could be faster than McLaren, as do Alfa Romeo. So McLaren actually have a goal on their again, groups are taking benefit whereas they’re having issues.
“McLaren might need missed some targets, nevertheless it doesn’t suggest they cannot hit their targets as soon as they perceive their automobile a bit of higher and convey some upgrades, which is able to unlock the potential. Lando Norris is saying there’s great things coming however in the mean time I believe McLaren are undoubtedly on the again foot and they’ll go away from right here, along with Mercedes, considering they need to do higher.
“I believe Haas are simply forward of Alfa Romeo. They have two good drivers in there, it is a strong automobile, and I believe that is a bundle that appears to be extra sorted in its personal head than Alfa Romeo. It is a very huge change, Alfa Romeo have made.
“Then we have now the enigma of Alpine. On their day, they are often solidly fifth however they will slip down simply to sixth or seventh. What they do have are two very intently matched drivers. They’ve by no means been separated by greater than half a second. So long as that works constructively, I believe they will be solidly fifth in the mean time.
“I will be barely reticent and say that Aston Martin are third and Mercedes are fourth in the mean time. I’ve acquired Aston Martin forward and probably even a bit of bit nearer to Ferrari. That is to do with Fernando Alonso’s race run.
“In Saturday’s Bahrain GP [long runs] such because it was, it might have been Max Verstappen, Sergio Perez and Fernando Alonso on the rostrum forward of the Ferraris and the Mercedes. Aston Martin had Purple Bull fearful from Day One, Adrian Newey (Purple Bull’s chief technical officer) talked about them within the groups he is involved about, the automobile is actually good, it has some good concepts.
Anthony Davidson analyses Lewis Hamilton’s efficiency within the new Mercedes W14 throughout testing
“We have to see a giant step from Mercedes over the subsequent few days for them to be solidly third. When Lewis Hamilton got here out and mentioned that the porpoising was largely gone however a number of the ‘stability limitations’ of final 12 months’s automobile are nonetheless current, I could not imagine it. I believed, dangle on, that is the Mercedes that’s purported to be okay! However they’re nonetheless affected by the issues they’d final 12 months.
“Ferrari are subsequent. Charles Leclerc might be considering, ‘Purple Bull have gotten a light-weight chassis, I won’t have my qualifying benefit, the place’s my race benefit going to return?’ That is the place Ferrari suffered at testing, the tyre degradation was not good.
“Ferrari have lots of work to do in qualifying, and the race. In the mean time, each of these have been considerably dominated by Purple Bull.
“I believe the one purpose Purple Bull weren’t dominating qualifying in the way in which Ferrari did early on final 12 months is as a result of the automobile final 12 months was chubby. That is not a problem they’ve this 12 months.”
David Croft thinks Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris with be asking questions of Mercedes and McLaren about their groups efficiency throughout testing
Sky Sports activities F1’s stay Bahrain GP schedule
Thursday
12.30pm: Drivers’ Press Convention
Friday
7.50am: F3 Observe
9am: F2 Observe
11am: Bahrain GP Observe One (session begins 11.30am)
1pm: F3 Qualifying
2.45pm: Bahrain GP Observe Two (session begins 3pm)
4.25pm: F2 Qualifying
5pm: The F1 Present: Bahrain
Saturday
9.10am: F3 Dash Race
11.15am: Bahrain GP Observe Three (session begins 11.30am)
1.10pm: F2 Dash Race
2.10pm: Bahrain GP Qualifying Construct-up
3pm: BAHRAIN GP QUALIFYING
4.30pm: Ted’s Qualifying Pocket book
Sunday
8.45am: F3 Characteristic Race
10.15am: F2 Characteristic Race
1.30pm: Grand Prix Sunday Bahrain GP Construct-up
3pm: THE BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX
5pm: Chequered flag: Bahrain GP Response
Components 1 is again! Watch the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix stay on Sky Sports activities F1 this weekend. The monitor motion begins on Friday whereas Sunday’s race begins at 3pm. Get Sky Sports