Welcome to the discussion thread for the 2020 Formula One Sakhir Grand Prix.
There is a sense of déjà vu as the teams and fans gear up for our second race at the Bahrain International Circuit in as many weeks.
Of course, what is different this weekend to mark the first
Sakhir Grand Prix, is the use of the Outer Circuit layout. This track configuration sees a lap length of just 3.543km, and with its high speeds, means that this weekend should see the shortest ever F1 lap in terms of absolute time taken. Current estimates are that pole will be in the low 50 second range.
The short lap length means that this weekend's race will see drivers take on 87 laps of the high-speed Outer Track layout. To add to the chaos, we will of course be seeing a couple of new faces on the grid, as well as one familiar face in a different car. Pietro Fittipaldi, grandson of Emerson, will be replacing Haas' Romain Grosjean as he recovers from the injuries he sustained in last weekend's Bahrain Grand Prix. Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton who is not allowed to race until he recovers from Covid-19, will be replaced by Mercedes junior driver, George Russell. This of course means that the Williams driver needs a replacement also, and this duty will fall to the Williams junior driver and 4-time F2 race winner, Jack Aitken.
So what will be interesting about this weekend? It should be fascinating to get a better read on the ability of the highly rated George Russell, as he gets his first taste of front-running machinery. Of course the last-minute nature of his loan to Mercedes means that the lack of proper preparation he'll have received should be taken into account, nonetheless it's hard to imagine that comparisons will not be made to both Valtteri Bottas as well as the absent Lewis Hamilton. It will also be interesting to see how the young talents filling in at Haas and Williams get on as they make their F1 debuts.
Valtteri Bottas and Max Verstappen probably head into this weekend as favourites, but with all of this week's chaos, and the extremely short lap times we'll be seeing, it's anyone's guess as to what the Sakhir Grand Prix might have in store for us!