Race: Button wins a third victory in Bahrain

Jenson Button won a third Grand Prix this season in Sakhir as part of the Bahrain GP. The Brawn GP driver beat Sebastian Vettel from Red Bull and Jarno Trulli for Toyota. Hamilton delivered a good performance for McLaren, Ferrari (finally) scored its first points with Räikkönen while BMW got bogged down.

It’s once again very hot under the Bahrain sun, 36°C in the air, almost 50°C on the track, and both the drivers and the cars suffered during the 57 laps of the race. The Toyotas monopolized the front row yesterday during the qualifications, and they manage to maintain their advantage once the red lights go out.

After the first corner, there are no major incidents to report. The track is very wide and allows for mistakes. At the front, it’s Glock who has taken the advantage over his teammate Trulli at the start. Hamilton starts well, using the KERS he’s already in third place. Alonso, on the other hand, completely misses his start. The Spaniard pressed the KERS too early and didn’t have enough speed, losing three positions and narrowly avoiding going off the track at the first corner. At the back of the grid, Webber, who started second to last, overtakes 5 drivers while the two Force India cars rub against each other. Kubica’s BMW even loses a piece of its front wing while grazing Kovalainen. There are a lot of debris on the track, but none actually hinders the competition.

Very quickly after the first lap, three groups form. The three leaders with Glock, Trulli, and Button – who quickly overtook Hamilton. At this stage, Hamilton is therefore 4th ahead of Vettel, Barrichello, Räikkönen, Alonso, Rosberg, and Massa. Further back, another group forms – Piquet with the R29 is causing a bottleneck but got off to a good start – and overtaking is happening on all sides. Some make contact. On the second lap, both BMWs and Nakajima’s Williams pit to change the front wing due to collisions. Massa also enters the pit one lap later, having encountered a sudden problem with the F60 but resumes normally.

Sébastien Buemi also had a poor start, unlike Sébastien Bourdais. The Swiss driver ended up in 17th place, two positions behind the French driver.

Soft tires have a definite advantage here, and many have chosen to use them right from the start. In fact, only Rosberg, Kovalainen, and the two BMW drivers are on hard tires. Their strategy allows them to have a very short first stint.

After 5 laps, the drivers calmed down and gaps began to form. At the front, only Button could keep up with the pace of the two very light Toyotas. After just 11 laps, Glock was the first to pit. He was the lightest among the leaders and handed over the lead to his teammate, Trulli. The Italian pitted on the next lap, and it was Button who took the lead of the race. Toyota opted for a second stint favoring Trulli, who came out ahead of his teammate. Indeed, Glock remained stuck in traffic, in ninth place behind Alonso and Rosberg, and was also equipped with soft tires. Trulli emerged ahead of Fernando Alonso’s Renault.

At the same time, the Red Bull drivers are putting on the pressure. Vettel pushes Hamilton, tries to overtake him but loses time by braking too wide, he’s on the verge of being passed by Barrichello for 5th place. Webber is 12th, he has made a good comeback after starting from 19th on the grid and is chasing down Nelson Piquet’s Renault.

Alonso also pushes Trulli and after two laps overtakes him on the outside. He benefits from the KERS, unlike the Toyota. Barrichello pits on the 14th lap. His teammate Button, who is then leading, does the same on the 16th lap, as does Hamilton. Button adds more fuel but retains his position, coming out in front of Alonso, Trulli, and Rosberg. Hamilton slots into the pack, ahead of Glock, the unfortunate one in this first round of pit stops.

Alonso pits on lap 17 and comes out 10th, behind Piquet and Barrichello. The latter has already pitted, while Piquet will only pit on lap 24 and brilliantly holds off his elder. The KERS is very useful in these conditions, and Barrichello loses a lot of time and gets frustrated. Piquet is finally overtaken 10 corners before he pits. Bourdais also pits on the same lap and still opts for the soft tires. The Frenchman comes out 16th but is on track for a good performance. Buemi is much further back and pits a lap after the Frenchman. The BMWs and Massa are in the last positions…

Ahead, Barrichello maneuvers on Glock. The German had a problem during his lap, very slow, and the Brawn GP settles in 7th place. This is not Toyota’s stint! Trulli is also overtaken by Vettel for the third step of the podium. Räikkönen is 8th after his first pit stop. The Finn will score Ferrari’s first points in four Grand Prix.

Barrichello surprises everyone by returning to the pits again on the 27th lap. The Brazilian had a very short second stint and will have to make three pit stops because he has not yet used hard tires.

At the 31st lap, it’s a disaster for BMW. Button laps Heidfeld and is about to do the same to Kubica. Both men had a poor start, but the F1.09 is simply not performing well. The Toro Rosso and Force India are much better today. Bourdais is 14th halfway through the race, Fisichella is 16th.

On the 33rd lap, Räikkönen tries to overtake Glock. The two men clash again, but Glock does not insist. The German comes into the pit on the next lap. He comes out with soft tires but behind Piquet in 10th position. On the 36th lap, Button leads the race by 16 seconds ahead of Vettel. Trulli is third after being overtaken by the Red Bull during the second pit stop. The positions stabilize, overtaking becomes rarer.

At the 42nd lap, all drivers except Trulli are on hard tires. The Italian will be more competitive for the final 15 laps. Behind, Webber passes Kovalainen for 13th place.

With 9 laps to go, Räikkönen was third and came into the pits. He came out side by side with Glock, but the Finn overtook thanks to the KERS two corners later. He was 7th and would score two points for Scuderia Ferrari. A lap later, Kubica spun. He was already a lap down but was battling with Massa. Another lap later, Nakajima came into the pits to retire.

With 6 laps to go, Massa continues to attack to climb back up. He makes contact with Fisichella (Force India) and overtakes the Italian for 14th place. He is now behind Bourdais.

The last five laps go by smoothly. No attacks to report, even though Trulli and Glock try to apply pressure. The gaps are reassuring and sufficient to secure his position. Button completes the 57th lap in the lead, thus winning his third Grand Prix of the year out of four events.

Sebastian Vettel crosses the finish line in second place ahead of Jarno Trulli, the poleman. Toyota couldn’t capitalize on its strong qualifying session. Glock finishes 7th. McLaren, on the other hand, confirms its return to form. Hamilton is just off the podium and finishes ahead of Rubens Barrichello. Räikkönen is 6th and earns three points for Ferrari, the first in four races. Alonso is the last man in the points. Rosberg and Piquet close out the top 10, somewhat reassuring Briatore and the Renault team.

Strong performances from Bourdais and Fisichella. They are 13th and 15th after starting from the back of the grid. Massa, Buemi, and the two BMWs may be disappointed with their race.

See you in two weeks for the Spanish GP, the first European event of the year.

Result of the Bahrain Grand Prix – Sunday, April 26, 2009: