AMID THE MANY INTRICATE technicalities of the first race of the new F1, with its ‘easy passing’ ground-effect aero and bigger tyres, with the difficulties of keeping those Pirellis in shape and stopping the brakes from overheating away to nothing, amid all that – there was a race. A race for the win, human and emotional, and Charles Leclerc won it, giving Scuderia Ferrari its first victory since 2019. Max Verstappen made him work for it, and it wasn’t entirely clear which was actually the faster car. Leclerc had shaved pole 0.123sec ahead of Verstappen but the latter’s preparation lap had been a little compromised by traffic, his tyres not quite in the temperature window at the beginning of the lap. Leclerchad then won the start too, giving himself the big advantage at Bahrain of clear air. Clean air to keep the aero loads even and the tyres from being abused. Cool air to keep the brakes and PU in their happy place. For Sakhir is brutally hard on brakes and tyres. The layout allows no respite and temperatures can oh-so-easily get out of control.