2015 Bahrain Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Lewis Hamilton won under the Bahrain floodlights, but Kimi Räikkönen‘s late charge denied Mercedes a one-two. Nico Rosberg finished third after brake trouble, while Sebastian Vettel‘s extra stop left him fighting further down the order.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes
Pole time	1:32.571
Fastest lap	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari
Fastest-lap time	1:36.311 on lap 42
First	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes
Second	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari
Third	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
17 April 2015	Practice 1	14:00 – 15:30
17 April 2015	Practice 2	18:00 – 19:30
18 April 2015	Practice 3	15:00 – 16:00
18 April 2015	Qualifying	18:00
19 April 2015	Race	18:00

All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.

Championship background

Lewis Hamilton arrived at round 4 leading the 2015 F1 World Championship on 68 points, with Sebastian Vettel on 55. Mercedes headed the constructors’ standings with 119 points.

Race entries

The 10 teams kept the same race line-ups for the Bahrain Grand Prix. Jolyon Palmer also took part in practice.

Free Practice

Kimi Räikkönen led a Ferrari one-two in the hot opening session, while Mercedes concentrated on high-fuel runs and tyre wear rather than headline lap times. Sebastian Vettel recovered from an early problem to complete useful running, but Jenson Button spun at the first corner and took no further part while McLaren worked on his car. Fernando Alonso‘s seventh place offered the team some encouragement, and Jolyon Palmer again appeared for Lotus.

Under the floodlights, Mercedes switched the emphasis and Nico Rosberg narrowly headed Lewis Hamilton. Ferrari remained close enough to keep the contest interesting, with Kimi Räikkönen again faster than Sebastian Vettel. Jenson Button‘s troubles continued when he stopped during the session, although he returned for a few late laps. A collision between Sebastian Vettel and Sergio Pérez at the first corner damaged the Ferrari‘s front wing and brought out a late red flag.

Strong winds and high temperatures discouraged much early running in FP3, making the later laps particularly valuable. Lewis Hamilton finished quickest, but Sebastian Vettel was only a tenth behind, with Nico Rosberg and Kimi Räikkönen completing a tightly matched leading group. Daniil Kvyat‘s spin at Turn 4 caused a brief stoppage. The final hour left Mercedes ahead, but Ferrari‘s proximity promised a more competitive qualifying session than the opening practice order alone had suggested.

Free Practice 1 Classification

2015 Bahrain Grand Prix FP1, 17 April 2015

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	1:37.827	13
2	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	+0.202s	12
3	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	+0.563s	23
4	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	+0.620s	14
5	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+0.628s	17
6	33	Max Verstappen	Toro Rosso	+0.677s	22
7	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	+0.771s	18
8	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	+0.801s	17
9	26	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull Racing	+0.834s	17
10	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	+0.963s	21
11	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+0.966s	15
12	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus F1	+1.015s	23
13	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+1.360s	20
14	30	Jolyon Palmer	Lotus F1	+1.456s	31
15	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+1.466s	23
16	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	+1.705s	22
17	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+1.707s	21
18	28	Will Stevens	Manor Marussia	+5.146s	12
19	98	Roberto Merhi	Manor Marussia	+6.438s	15
20	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	No time	2

Free Practice 2 Classification

2015 Bahrain Grand Prix FP2, 17 April 2015

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:34.647	31
2	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	+0.115s	33
3	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.527s	30
4	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	+0.630s	26
5	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	+0.633s	36
6	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+0.802s	27
7	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus F1	+0.827s	34
8	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	+1.146s	27
9	26	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull Racing	+1.236s	23
10	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	+1.237s	35
11	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+1.501s	34
12	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	+1.544s	22
13	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	+1.687s	31
14	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	+1.824s	32
15	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+2.158s	30
16	33	Max Verstappen	Toro Rosso	+2.270s	26
17	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+2.415s	33
18	28	Will Stevens	Manor Marussia	+4.484s	21
19	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	+4.562s	15
20	98	Roberto Merhi	Manor Marussia	+5.945s	26

Free Practice 3 Classification

2015 Bahrain Grand Prix FP3, 18 April 2015

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:34.599	13
2	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	+0.069s	14
3	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+0.369s	16
4	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.542s	13
5	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	+0.794s	18
6	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	+0.872s	15
7	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus F1	+1.708s	14
8	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+1.736s	8
9	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+1.822s	13
10	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	+1.830s	18
11	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	+1.889s	14
12	26	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull Racing	+1.949s	7
13	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+2.013s	17
14	33	Max Verstappen	Toro Rosso	+2.085s	11
15	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+2.128s	14
16	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	+2.300s	11
17	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	+2.380s	14
18	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	+2.552s	17
19	28	Will Stevens	Manor Marussia	+5.146s	12
20	98	Roberto Merhi	Manor Marussia	+5.942s	14

Qualifying

Lewis Hamilton headed qualifying for Mercedes, with Sebastian Vettel second and Nico Rosberg third.

Lewis Hamilton claimed his fourth pole from four races, ahead of Sebastian Vettel and Nico Rosberg. Jenson Button‘s electrical problems prevented a qualifying time and ultimately kept his McLaren out of the race.

Qualifying Classification

2015 Bahrain Grand Prix Qualifying, 18 April 2015

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:33.928	1:32.669	1:32.571	16
2	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	1:34.919	1:33.623	1:32.982	12
3	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:34.398	1:33.878	1:33.129	16
4	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	1:34.568	1:33.540	1:33.227	15
5	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	1:34.161	1:33.897	1:33.381	16
6	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	1:34.488	1:33.551	1:33.744	16
7	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	1:34.691	1:34.403	1:33.832	15
8	27	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India	1:35.653	1:34.613	1:34.450	15
9	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	1:35.371	1:34.641	1:34.462	18
10	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	1:35.007	1:34.123	1:34.484	20
11	11	Sergio Pérez	Force India	1:35.451	1:34.704	—	12
12	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	1:35.310	1:34.737	—	9
13	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	1:35.438	1:35.034	—	9
14	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	1:35.205	1:35.039	—	10
15	33	Max Verstappen	Toro Rosso	1:35.611	1:35.103	—	14
16	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus F1	1:35.677	—	—	7
17	26	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull Racing	1:35.800	—	—	6
18	28	Will Stevens	Manor Marussia	1:38.713	—	—	6
19	98	Roberto Merhi	Manor Marussia	1:39.722	—	—	6
—	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	no time	—	—	1

Jenson Button received permission from the stewards to start the race despite not setting a qualifying time.

What happened in the 2015 Bahrain Grand Prix?

Hamilton led from pole as Räikkönen passed Rosberg on the opening lap. Rosberg fought back past both Ferraris, although Vettel repeatedly used earlier pit stops to regain track position and force the Mercedes to pass again.

Vettel ran wide at the final corner after his second stop, damaging his front wing. The additional visit to the pits dropped him behind Valtteri Bottas and removed him from the podium contest.

Räikkönen used the harder tyre for his middle stint, preserving a faster set for the closing laps. He rapidly reduced the gap to Rosberg, whose brake problem and excursion at Turn 1 allowed the Ferrari into second near the finish.

Hamilton held on to win despite his own late brake concerns. Bottas resisted Vettel for fourth, while Daniel Ricciardo reached sixth even as his engine failed at the finish. Fernando Alonso narrowly missed a point in eleventh.

Further down the points places, Romain Grosjean, Sergio Pérez, Daniil Kvyat and Felipe Massa completed the scoring positions. Kimi Räikkönen set the fastest lap, but no bonus point was awarded under the 2015 rules.

After the race, Lewis Hamilton headed the drivers’ standings with 93 points, followed by Nico Rosberg on 66. Mercedes led the constructors’ table on 159, with Ferrari on 107.

2015 Bahrain Grand Prix race results

The 2015 Bahrain Grand Prix was held on 19 April 2015, with a scheduled start of 18:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	57	1:35:05.809	25
2	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	57	+3.380	18
3	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	57	+6.033	15
4	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	57	+42.957	12
5	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	57	+43.989	10
6	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	57	+1:01.751	8
7	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	57	+1:24.763	6
8	11	Sergio Pérez	Force India	56	+1 Lap	4
9	26	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull Racing	56	+1 Lap	2
10	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	56	+1 Lap	1
11	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	56	+1 Lap	0
12	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	56	+1 Lap	0
13	27	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India	56	+1 Lap	0
14	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	56	+1 Lap	0
15	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus F1	56	+1 Lap	0
16	28	Will Stevens	Manor Marussia	55	+2 Laps	0
17	98	Roberto Merhi	Manor Marussia	54	+3 Laps	0
Ret	33	Max Verstappen	Toro Rosso	34	Electrical	0
Ret	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	29	Wheel hub	0
DNS	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	0	Power Unit	0

Pastor Maldonado mistakenly lined up in 18th position on the starting grid. This pushed Will Stevens behind him one row down as well, while the 16th slot was left vacant. Maldonado received a 5-second penalty as a result.

McLaren were unable to start Jenson Button ‘s car due to a problem with the Energy Recovery System, as a result of which it remained in the pit lane altogether.

2015 Bahrain Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time of Day	Time	Avg. Speed
1	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	42	19:14:31	1:36.311	202.294
2	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	38	19:08:14	1:36.624	201.639
3	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	36	19:04:25	1:37.326	200.184
4	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus F1	43	19:18:35	1:37.665	199.490
5	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	38	19:07:34	1:37.857	199.098
6	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	16	18:31:09	1:38.095	198.615
7	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	43	19:17:36	1:38.216	198.370
8	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	39	19:10:31	1:38.338	198.124
9	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	27	18:50:31	1:38.422	197.955
10	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	40	19:12:33	1:38.653	197.492
11	26	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull Racing	36	19:05:35	1:38.725	197.348
12	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	53	19:33:13	1:38.948	196.903
13	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	38	19:09:11	1:38.992	196.815
14	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	12	18:24:38	1:39.094	196.613
15	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	34	19:01:53	1:39.161	196.480
16	33	Max Verstappen	Toro Rosso	32	18:59:21	1:39.607	195.600
17	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	13	18:26:33	1:40.651	193.571
18	28	Will Stevens	Manor Marussia	36	19:07:22	1:41.759	191.464
19	98	Roberto Merhi	Manor Marussia	36	19:07:54	1:42.033	190.949

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. Average speeds are in km/h. No fastest-lap bonus point was awarded. Time of Day is local.

2015 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 2015 Bahrain Grand Prix.

2015 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Lewis Hamilton	British	Mercedes	93
2	Nico Rosberg	German	Mercedes	66
3	Sebastian Vettel	German	Ferrari	65
4	Kimi Räikkönen	Finnish	Ferrari	42
5	Felipe Massa	Brazilian	Williams	31
6	Valtteri Bottas	Finnish	Williams	30
7	Daniel Ricciardo	Australian	Red Bull Racing	19
8	Felipe Nasr	Brazilian	Sauber	14
9	Romain Grosjean	French	Lotus F1	12
10	Nico Hülkenberg	German	Force India	6
11	Max Verstappen	Dutch	Toro Rosso	6
12	Carlos Sainz	Spanish	Toro Rosso	6
13	Sergio Pérez	Mexican	Force India	5
14	Marcus Ericsson	Swedish	Sauber	5
15	Daniil Kvyat	Russian	Red Bull Racing	4
16	Fernando Alonso	Spanish	McLaren	0
17	Jenson Button	British	McLaren	0
18	Roberto Merhi	Spanish	Manor Marussia	0
19	Will Stevens	British	Manor Marussia	0
20	Pastor Maldonado	Venezuelan	Lotus F1	0
–	Kevin Magnussen	Danish	McLaren	0

2015 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Mercedes	159
2	Ferrari	107
3	Williams	61
4	Red Bull Racing	23
5	Sauber	19
6	Lotus F1	12
7	Toro Rosso	12
8	Force India	11
9	McLaren	0
10	Manor Marussia	0

2015 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	2015 Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne	15 March
2	2015 Malaysian Grand Prix	Sepang International Circuit, Sepang	29 March
3	2015 Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai	12 April
4	2015 Bahrain Grand Prix	Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir	19 April
5	2015 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Montmeló	10 May
6	2015 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	24 May
7	2015 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	7 June
8	2015 Austrian Grand Prix	Red Bull Ring, Spielberg	21 June
9	2015 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	5 July
10	2015 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	26 July
11	2015 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	23 August
12	2015 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	6 September
13	2015 Singapore Grand Prix	Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore	20 September
14	2015 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	27 September
15	2015 Russian Grand Prix	Sochi Autodrom, Sochi	11 October
16	2015 United States Grand Prix	Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas	25 October
17	2015 Mexican Grand Prix	Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, Mexico City	1 November
18	2015 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	15 November
19	2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi	29 November