“I got a great getaway and from then I tried to control the pace. That’s where my focus is, five wins or three wins, it doesn’t make a difference”.
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The Briton charged back to third by lap eight, including an incident-free passing of Bottas but Rosberg had long moved far ahead of the pack under the Bahrain floodlights.
Rosberg led through the first corner and romped away untroubled, while Hamilton was hit broadside by the Williams of Finland’s Valtteri Bottas and had to fight back from seventh.
Ricciardo finished fourth for Red Bull, for the second race in succession, ahead of Frenchman Romain Grosjean, who secured a fine fifth for the new American Haas team, and sixth placed Dutch teenager Max Verstappen of Toro Rosso. “The key, for me, was the start”.
While fellow countryman Rosberg was driving to victory, Vettel was unable to complete even a lap after the engine in his Ferrari failed spectacularly before the drivers were given the green light.
Two podium finishes in as many races have proved the Ferarri threat, especially the 2nd place finish today.
Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg (right) sprays third-place finisher, Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen, with champagne after winning the Bahrain Grand Prix. He may ponder, with a winsome smile, that he is unbeaten in six months, since Lewis Hamilton won in Austin in October to take his third world championship.
“I don’t know what happened to the other auto but, obviously something went wrong”.
Bottas was blamed by stewards and was forced to do a pitlane drive-through penalty.
“I had so much damage to the auto, I couldn’t fight with Kimi”, said Hamilton.
“So we need to keep pushing because they haven’t shown what they are capable of yet, that’s clear because they’ve had so many mishaps which have cost them dearly”.
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McLaren reserve driver Stoffel Vandoorne enjoyed his first F1 drive as he claimed a single point thanks to a 10th-place finish, the Belgian holding off Kevin Magnussen, Marcus Ericsson and Pascal Wehrlein.
Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg of Germany, winner, celebrates with team members after the Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix, at the Formula One Bahrain International Circuit, in Sakhir, Bahrain, Sunday, April 3, 2016. “I’m just taking it race by race and it’s great to win here today, great to win two on the trot and that’s it”.
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While Hamilton was charging through the pack, Jenson Button’s day came to a premature end when he retired with mechanical gremlins.
