Bahrain Grand Prix Circuit lap with Franco Colapinto

      Last year, Franco Colapinto drove nine races for Williams, and this season he is acting as a reserve driver for Alpine F1. Before the Bahrain Grand Prix, the Argentine racer drove a lap around the Sahir circuit on a simulator and talked about the features of this track, literally located in the middle of the desert.

      Franco Colapinto: "It's time for the Bahrain Grand Prix – if it used to be the start of the season, but now it's changed. The track here is great, but it is quite difficult to race there because of the increased degradation of the rubber. In general, it is very important to work properly with the tires there, including during qualifying.

      So, let's start the lap: it is important to get out of the last corner as best as possible in order to accelerate on the straight line, where the DRS zone is located, and reach the highest possible speed before the 1st turn.

      The 1st turn is very slow, and sometimes it is quite difficult to pass it without being blocked, especially since you need to position the car correctly on the track for the normal passage of the 2nd turn. After that, it is also important to accelerate effectively, because another DRS zone begins there, and at the exit of this turn, you must try to prevent the car from sliding, despite the fact that the rear tires quickly overheat on this track.

      After the 3rd turn, the next DRS zone begins, and in the 4th it is quite difficult to stay within the limits of the track, but it is important not to violate them. Then the high-speed section begins, and in the 5th and 6th turns there is a quick change of direction, and it is important to pass them in the right rhythm.

      By the 8th turn, you start to feel that the rubber is overheating. We pass this hairpin at a very low speed, and it is important to adjust the balance there, for which the rider uses the options at his disposal to change the settings.

      In particular, the steering wheel has controls for differential settings and brake balance changes, and all this should be used when passing turn 10, the slowest on this track and one of the slowest on the entire calendar.

      In a straight line, after this turn, another DRS zone begins, so you need to accelerate well at the exit, trying to prevent the drive wheels from slipping.

      Then we overcome several turns, which I consider to be the best part of the Bahrain circuit: we enter the 12th turn, trying not only to maintain high speed, but also gradually increase it. Moreover, it must be carried out almost at full throttle, and even with the DRS open.

      Next, we enter turn 13, and here you may have great difficulties due to the wind, because this is the highest point of the track. The wind blows sideways there, which affects the behavior of the car, so it's not easy to complete the lap well, especially since the tires are already thoroughly overheated.

      Nevertheless, it is necessary to try to maintain good speed in the last corner and get out of it well, because after it begins a long acceleration towards the finish line. So, we drove a lap on the highway in Bahrain! Racing here is quite interesting, and I hope it will be the same this year."