The Scuderia might have been fortunate to win in Melbourne but victory in Bahrain was anything but a fluke. The team had the pace all weekend and their car proved, at the Sakhir circuit at least, to be superior to Mercedes. But they also had to be willing to take a risk and trust their driver. Switching to a one-stop mid race was a bold move and Vettel had to put in a superlative performance to turn it into a win. He made his tyres last 39 laps when Pirelli’s predicted lifespan was just 30 and did so without going off despite the deteriorating grip. Had he spilled it just once, it would likely have cost him the win. The team principal, Maurizio Arrivabene, was rightly effusive. “Today’s result is confirmation of the great job done by the team, of an effective car and of a driver who drove like a true champion.”
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