Electronic issues cut Max' Bahrain Grand Prix short

Published on 19 April 2015 by Stefan Meens

For the second consecutive time, Max Verstappen's race was cut short due to issues. The DNF in the Bahrain Grand Prix marked the end of a tough weekend for the Scuderia Toro Rosso driver. Throughout the weekend, the youngster was unable to get on top of the STR10 set up, resulting in a disappointing fifteenth place on the starting grid.
Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton continued his successful campaign with his third win of the season. Kimi Raikkonen finished second, ahead of Nico Rosberg.

When the lights go out, Max does not have the best of starts and in a tough first lap: Max touches with Pastor Maldonado. The team asks the Dutchman if there is any damage to front wing, but he is unable to see from the cockpit if there is any visible damage. Max stays out on track, but struggles due to ERS-issues in the opening stint of the race.
“Right from the start I struggled with the car that was affected by electronic issues. The whole race I had to take it easy. It meant I lost a lot of speed down the straights. It felt as if I wasn’t moving when others overtook me", says Max to Verstappen.nl
 

Toro Rosso hopes to change their driver's fortunes by calling him to the pits early. However, due to a communication issue, the tyres are not ready when Max makes his stop. After a lengthy visit to the pits, Max resumes the Grand Prix in last position.

During his second stint, the 17-year-old is again powerless as his engine settings are all dialled back to the safest and most conservative settings. The cautious approach proves, however, in vain. An hour into the race, in lap 36, Max parks his STR10 in the Toro Rosso garage, marking the end of his first Bahrain Grand Prix.

At the front, an intriguing battle for second between Nico Rosberg and both Ferraris unfolds behind sovereign leader and race winner Lewis Hamilton. In the opening stages, Sebastian Vettel is able to stay close to the British world champion. However, after a small mistake, Rosberg takes P2.

In the first round of pitstops, Ferrari strikes back by successfully using the undercut to give Vettel second place back. However, the German is distracted by race leader Hamilton exiting the pits. Third placed Rosberg takes his change and surprises Vettel into turn 1 to snatch second.

Ferrari again come to Vettel's rescue. The Italian team repeats the undercut strategy from the first stops and manages to put Vettel out in front of his compatriot. Another mistake by the four time world champion gives Rosberg P2 back and forces Vettel to visit to pit for a new nose. The unscheduled stop moves his team mate Raikkonen up to third.

The Finn has switched to the soft compound for his final stint and is now chasing down Rosberg. A brake-by-wire issue forces the German wide into turn 1 and Kimi Raikkonen claims the runner-up position behind race winner Lewis Hamilton.

As the Mercedes ace crosses the line to take the victory, Toro Rosso's mechanics are already packing up as Carlos Sainz also fails to finish due to mechanical problems. Max: “To not finish three out of four races is not ideal and a cause for concern. We now have three weeks to analyse and solve the problems so we can come back stronger in Barcelona and fight for points again. That’s where we belong!”

Bahrain Grand Prix – Bahrain International Circuit – Sunday 19 April

RACE RESULTS
1 	Lewis Hamilton 	        GBR 	Mercedes 	1:35:05.809 	25
2 	Kimi Räikkönen 	        FIN 	Ferrari 	+3.38s 		18
3 	Nico Rosberg 		GER 	Mercedes 	+6.033s 	15
4 	Valtteri Bottas 	FIN   	Williams 	+42.957s 	12
5 	Sebastian Vettel  	GER 	Ferrari 	+43.989s 	10
6 	Daniel Ricciardo   	AUS 	Red Bull 	+61.751s 	8
7 	Romain Grosjean 	FRA 	Lotus 		+84.763s 	6
8 	Sergio Perez 		MEX 	Force India 	+1 lap 		4
9 	Daniil Kvyat 		RUS 	Red Bull 	+1 lap 		2
10 	Felipe Massa 		BRA 	Williams 	+1 lap	 	1
11 	Fernando Alonso 	ESP 	McLaren 	+1 lap	 	0
12 	Felipe Nasr 		BRA 	Sauber 		+1 lap	 	0
13 	Nico Hulkenberg 	GER 	Force India 	+1 lap	 	0
14 	Marcus Ericsson 	SWE 	Sauber 		+1 lap	 	0
15 	Pastor Maldonado 	VEN 	Lotus 		+1 lap 		0
16 	Will Stevens 		GBR 	Marussia 	+2 laps	 	0
17 	Roberto Merhi 		ESP 	Marussia 	+3 laps	 	0
RT 	Max Verstappen 	        NED 	Toro Rosso 	DNF 		0
RT 	Carlos Sainz 	        ESP 	Toro Rosso 	DNF 		0
DNS 	Jenson Button           GBR 	McLaren 	DNS 		0
 
Fastest lap - Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari, 1m 36.311s (lap 42)