Valtteri Bottas was brought in by Mercedes this year as a replacement for retired world champion Nico Rosberg. The Finn, beat Hamilton by just 0.023 seconds. Bottas lap brought to an end Hamiltons’s run of six consecutive poles dating back to last year’s US GP.
Bottas has bounced back from a difficult race in China last weekend, in which he spun while warming his tyres behind the safety car and finished sixth as Hamilton won.
Hamilton said, “I’m genuinely happy for Valtteri. He has done a fantastic job, been inching away at it bit by bit. He did a better job today. It could be his first win, and if it’s not he will get a win. He’s an exceptional driver.”
Sebastian Vettel – who is leading the championship jointly with Hamilton finished third behind both the Mercedes drivers believes tyre management will be very crucial as conditions will be a bit different and a lot of things can change around.
In case you missed the amazing qualifying session of Bahrain GP, here are the highlights of the top moments.
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