Max Verstappen Victory in the Bahrain Grand Prix Sets the Stage for the First Race of the F1 Season

 Max Verstappen Victory in the Bahrain Grand Prix Sets the Stage for the First Race of the F1 Season

• In the first race of the F1 season, Max Verstappen's dominant victory in the Bahrain Grand Prix on Saturday set a formidable tone for the rest of the field.

• His victory erased any lingering questions about Red Bull's resilience during the winter or the significance of an outside probe into team owner Christian Horner's alleged inappropriate behavior.

• Following the alleged leak of messages to the F1 community on Thursday, Horner was cleared of any wrongdoing on Wednesday and restated his denial of the charges on Friday.

• Amid the controversy, Horner and his wife, former Spice Girl Geri Halliwell-Horner, showed togetherness in the paddock before the race. 

• Red Bull's racing weekend was dominated by controversy, but it did not appear to have an impact on the team's on-track performance as Sergio Perez repeated the 1-2 finish he achieved in the opening race of the previous season. Carlos Sainz of Ferrari came in third.

• Verstappen and Red Bull had a fantastic season the previous year, and in Bahrain, the three-time world champion maintained his leadership by setting the fastest lap and earning as many points as he could in the drivers' championship.

• "I think today went even better than expected," Verstappen said to Sky Sports during the race. "Unbelievable,"

• "I felt like we drove at a really good pace and it was a lot of fun." It's been an excellent start to the year; we avoided problems and it couldn't have gone better. 

• I felt great in the automobile, and it was a lot of fun. These days, when everything goes flawlessly and you feel one with the automobile, are usually really special since they don't come very frequently."

• By the beginning of the second lap, Verstappen had opened up a 1.2-second lead after holding off a challenge from Charles Leclerc on the first corner.

• Eventually, he sailed free of all the maneuvers going on behind him, finishing more than 22 seconds ahead of Perez. 

• George Russell of Mercedes momentarily edged into second place while Perez, who began in position five, fought his way up the field, past Russell and the Ferrari duo of Sainz and Leclerc to take second.

• Russell finished in fifth place after being passed by the Ferraris despite his early success. While this was going on, Lewis Hamilton, his teammate, never really threatened the leaders and came in seventh.

• Next weekend's Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in Jeddah will take place in the Middle East, marking the continuation of the Formula One season.