It didn’t look like Haas were going to have a strong showing at the Bahrain Grand Prix, but Sunday’s race went better than team principal Ayao Komatsu could have ever expected.
The weekend started with both Esteban Ocon and Oliver Bearman hoping to add to their points tally after strong showings in China and Japan, after a nightmare Australian Grand Prix.
The Bahrain Grand Prix saw all 10 teams return to the circuit where they did three days of pre-season testing, albeit in completely different conditions to the ones they were subject to in February.
Haas infamously didn’t do any qualifying runs during testing, and while that was the reason why both drivers struggled, Saturday was a disaster for the manufacturer.
Ocon had a big crash in Q2 and started 14th, while Bearman got Q1 all wrong and qualified last.
However, by the time the chequered flag flew on Sunday, Komatsu and his two drivers were absolutely delighted with the result.
They’ve now established themselves as the best of the rest, much to the surprise of many people in the paddock.
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Esteban Ocon congratulates Oliver Bearman on his Bahrain Grand Prix performance
Bearman took to Instagram to celebrate finishing 10th, having made up 10 places during the race to score the final point of the day.
The young Brit overtook five cars on the opening lap before Haas nailed his and Ocon’s strategy, and he held off Mercedes star Andrea Kimi Antonelli to secure a precious point.
Posting on Instagram, Bearman said: “YEEEEAAHHHH. Crazy race and turnaround from yesterday, love this team.
“Just the momentum we need going to Jeddah, can’t wait to get back there.”
His teammate Ocon replied and said: “Great comeback buddy, well done!”
Ocon’s relationship with Pierre Gasly was fractious to say the least, but that doesn’t appear to be a problem with Bearman.
However, Gasly had the last laugh in Bahrain, as he scored Alpine’s first points of the season after a phenomenal weekend.
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Franco Colapinto congratulates Pierre Gasly on scoring Alpine’s first points in Bahrain
Jacques Villeneuve called Gasly the surprise of the day after qualifying as he lined up on the second row alongside George Russell.
He slipped down the order to sixth and spent the last 20 laps trying to hold off four-time world champion Max Verstappen.
The Dutchman got him on the final lap, but his six-point haul was still enough to see the Anglo-French team leapfrog Sauber in the constructors’ championship.
Reflecting on the race, Gasly said: “First points today! P7, some good battles out there, gave it all to hold onto that P6, but it wasn’t quite enough, unfortunately.
“It was a much better weekend all around, top 5 quali and first points today, strong performance from the whole team @alpinef1team! Let’s build on that.”
Alpine’s reserve driver, Franco Colapinto, replied to Gasly’s post and simply said: “VAMOS!”
It’ll be interesting to know how Alpine team bosses reacted to the performance of Gasly’s teammate, Jack Doohan.
Doohan is under pressure at Alpine, but he produced his strongest qualifying performance of the season and was running in the points for much of the race.
Unfortunately, he could only secure a 14th and earned a five-second penalty for exceeding track limits, and the Australian will be desperate to emulate Gasly’s achievement at the next race in Saudi Arabia.
