Torquing Point: The 2021 Bahrain Grand Prix

Formula 1 is back, and Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen and the rest of the grid left Torquing Point with plenty to discuss.

So often last season, there was little to say about Hamilton’s wins such was his dominance, but that certainly wasn’t the case at the Bahrain Grand Prix. Given how thrilling his fight with Verstappen was, it’s the only place to start.

Finley and Michelle analyse the battle between the two and how and why the Mercedes man ultimately prevailed. He may have done so this time, but did the Dutchman and Red Bull show that they’re ready to challenge him for a title?

If they are to do so, they’ll need some help from Sergio Perez, and judging by how he did in his first race for the team, they’ll get it. In fact, so good was his charge from the pit-lane to P5 that the PF1 team can see him getting the better of Valtteri Bottas at the least once he starts further up the order.

Once all matters at the front are covered, the discussion then moves on to the stand-out drivers of the midfield, with Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris, Yuki Tsunoda and Fernando Alonso receiving most of the praise for their efforts.

One man not receiving such praise is Sebastian Vettel, who picked up where he left off in 2020, continuing to struggle and making sloppy mistakes. If race number one at Aston Martin was a sign of things to come, his days in F1 may well be numbered.

Look on the bright side though, Seb, it could be worse. You could be worse Nikita Mazepin. The Russian couldn’t have made a worse start to his F1 career if he tried after crashing out at the start. If he wants to improve his reputation, that’s not the way to go about it.

His team-mate, Mick Schumacher, had a better debut race, doing all that was required of him, making it to the end. The Haas undoubtedly seems to be the worst car on the grid, but that could at least ease some of the immense pressure on Mick’s shoulders.

Head over to your provider of choice to listen to the latest episode or simply press play below.

Follow us on Twitter @Planet_F1, like our Facebook page and join us on Instagram!