More F1 stars arrive, BIC accords welcome

Manama : Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) continued to welcome Formula 1’s star drivers into the Kingdom yesterday with Valtteri Bottas of Williams, Daniil Kvyat of Red Bull Racing, and Manor teammates Pascal Wehrlein and Rio Haryanto among those spotted at Bahrain International Airport arriving ahead of this weekend’s 2016 Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix.

The drivers, as well as other F1 officials and team members, were received upon reaching Bahrain by BIC’s Meet and Greet staff.

BIC hosts the racing and entertainment spectacle from Friday to Sunday with an extra day of fan events tomorrow.

On-track action is scheduled to get underway on Friday with a pair of hour-and-a-half Practice sessions. The first is scheduled to flag off at 2pm while the next will be held under floodlights from 6pm. A third hour-long Practice will be held on Saturday from 3pm, leading up to Qualifying at 6pm.

The 57-lap Bahrain Grand Prix will take place on Sunday, April 3 with a 6pm start and it will be yet another dramatic climax to a fantastic F1 weekend in Sakhir.

This year’s Bahrain Grand Prix marks the second of a record 21 rounds in the 2016 FIA Formula 1 World Championship. 

Meanwhile, F1 teams Williams, Force India and Toro Rosso will be looking to secure positive results in Bahrain following a solid start to the season in Australia just over a week ago.

All three are considered to be right behind the favourites in the F1 pecking order, and good performances Down Under have given them a boost as they head to the top flight’s only desert event.

Williams’ Felipe Massa enjoyed the best finish amongst the teams’ six drivers. He was classified fifth, but was not too far ahead of teammate Valtteri Bottas, who was eighth.

Force India’s Nico Hulkenberg finished between them in seventh position, while both Toro Rosso drivers Carlos Sainz Jr and Max Verstappen managed to squeeze into the top 10 and come away with the race’s final points haul with Hulkenberg’s Force India partner Sergio Perez classified 13th.

An upbeat Massa had plenty of good things to say about the Bahrain race. “Bahrain is definitely a place I really enjoy racing,” he commented. “I’ve won twice before and had many other good results.

“I always enjoy going there, including many times for testing. I like the  people as well as the place in general and look forward to having a good race and another fantastic result in a place I enjoy.”

Teammate Bottas says he is also fond of racing at BIC. He said: “The Bahrain evening race is a really nice one. I prefer it much more as an evening race. The track looks good and is just as nice to drive. It’s a good track for racing and I got a decent result last year.”