[Yudster]

Which was a result of the race going ahead - not that its an excuse. Prior to the race being scheduled, when the whole argument about whether it should or shouldn't happen was actually relevant, all the violence was government-led. I agree what's happened since is not the way forward for the people of Bahrain.

[MadTheEddos]

Regarding the racing itself, this season has started out massively competitive and I think it might turn out to be a classic. The last time we had 4 different constructors winning the first 4 races was in 1983. Plus we've got other cars(especially Lotus and Sauber) which haven't won yet but have shown race-winning pace. Also, and this is a great sign, every track seems to suit different cars and every race has had different frontrunners. The last time I remember a season being this close in terms of car performance was 1997, which was awesomely enjoyable.
The title battle looks like being a belter too - 4 races in and there's only 10 points separating Vettel in 1st and Alonso in 5th!
I'm hoping the European season will be similarly unpredictable - this has been awesome!

[dimtimjim]

^^ +1

[Senninha25]

Hopefully the competitiveness of the whole field will make the Spanish GP enjoyable and unpredictable, unlike the other borefests that happened in the previous years. I'd love to see some good upsets though, such as, you know, Sauebr finally winnning a race or WIlliams finishing really high up in the points, or one of the 3 bottom teams lucking their way into a points-scoring position.
After the testing at Mugello last week it's also expected that Ferrari may bring a more competitive package for Spain, and that plus Alonso racing home with huge support from the fanatic spanny-wannies in there...looks promising!

[MadTheEddos]

I remember last year when Fernando got that brilliant start at Barcelona and blasted into the lead. It would be nice if he could finally win his home GP again, especially since with the Championship as close as it is, another win would likely take him back to the top of the Championship table where he belongs. He's not got the car to do it with, but a wet or wet-dry race would make it very possible for him.
Ooh, rain at Barcelona - that would be perfect!

[MK Chris]

Yep, I think rain will be Ferrari's only chance to win the race, even with upgrades. Agree it'd nice to see Sauber up there - a win is unrealistic in my view (though not impossible if it rains), but I always like to see them up there, particularly when they have drivers as good as they do at the moment.

[The Deadly]

Ugh I hate the Spanish track, never really produces good racing. Hopefully we will get a better race this year.

[MadTheEddos]

Chris just said it was the Valencia GP this weekend. No! Bad Chris!

The Jake Humphrey interview later on should be decent though, I always like it when he's on the show.

[MadTheEddos]

So, Maldonado on pole!! Bloody hell, never saw that one coming. And Alonso alongside him with Kimi just behind!
This does actually have the makings of a quality race now. I'm expecting Alonso to take the lead at the start, but I think Kimi has the best chance at the win.

[Bonanzoid]

I'm expecting Alonso to take the lead at the start

Good shout!

[MadTheEddos]

Pretty decent race, epic by Barcelona standards! Brilliant win by Maldonado, managed the race nicely and drove very maturely as well. Make that 5 different constructors winning the first 5 races now! The Williams had much better race pace than I was expecting, hopefully they can have more success this season.
Great drive by Alonso too.
The relative lack of pace from Lotus was a bit disappointing, but it's pretty awesome that Kimi has moved himself into contention for the Championship without winning a race yet.
Terrible n00b-up by Schumacher. He did a Grand Theft Auto-style ram-raid on Ayrton Senna in France in '92, now he's managed to do the same with Bruno with a similar moment of brain fade.

Scary fire in the Williams garage after the race too. Apparently 9 people have minor injuries. Bad to hear, but thankfully everyone is safe.

[Yudster]

Schumacher is turning into a kind of parody of himself. His credibility level is firmly zero now.

[MK Chris]

The race was brilliant - some cracking driving, Maldonado and Lewis in particular. Maldonado drove an incredibly mature race - I have to admit, I was one of the people who questioned if he was really ready for F1 when Frank gave him the drive, especially since Hulkenberg got them a pole in his last race for them, but that drive has silenced a lot of people. That stint after his last pit stop could well end up being one of the drives of the season... but then there is going to be a lot of competition for that prize this season. Lewis is so mature as well this year, not letting things get to him even with the run of shit luck he's had. (By the way sticking him at the back of the grid was a ridiculously harsh punishment. I understand there had to be some form of punishment if you stick to the letter of the law (even though he was half a second quicker and the advantage gained by a slightly lighter fuel load wouldn't be anywhere near that), but just stick him in 10th and void his Q3 results for *'s sake.

As for Schumacher - well, Kimi is showing him how to make a comeback really isn't he. And he's never in the wrong. Ever. What a twat.

[The Deadly]

I have some sympathy for Schumacher, Senna did weave right and left in the approach to turn one. A driver of Michael's experience should avoid that type of incident though so I think his punishment is probably justified.

I get the feeling he is just keeping the seat warm for Sebastian Vettel........

[MK Chris]

He made a slight movement and I think his explanation that he thought Michael was going the other way was justified - he certainly wasn't moving to block.

It will be interesting to see the driver changes for next year - personally, I'd be astonished if Massa is still in a Ferrari - I wouldn't even be surprised if they dumped him before the end of the year, he's just not been the same since he came back from his crash unfortunately - that's a shame, I like him. I had in the past predicted Rosberg would take over from him, but now that Rosberg has a car that's quick, he may not want to move. The trouble is that there are too many good drivers for fast cars, but having said that, with Williams being competitive now (it'll be interesting to see how quick they are going forward) they may attract some good talent too. Kobayashi and Perez are both deserving of a quicker car, even though the Sauber's no slouch this season... I do think Michael's days are numbered.

[MK Chris]

My tweet got printed on the BBC F1 live commentary page:

[R94N]

[Bonanzoid]

My tweet got printed on the BBC F1 live commentary page:

How cute. I get tweets printed on the football page quite often haha.

[dimtimjim]

Whoop, whoop, well done LH.

[MK Chris]

Well-deserved, he's driven brilliantly all season and finally has got a win, great result. Didn't take a genius to work out Alonso's risk was never going to pay off - Lewis would have won whatever, but Alonso would still have been leading the championship if he'd reacted to Lewis' pitstop.

[The Deadly]

If Perez isn't driving a Ferrari next season I'll eat my imaginary hat.

[MK Chris]

I'd rather see him in a Mercedes (in place of Schumacher) or even a Red Bull, but since neither of those are likely (especially Red Bull), I think you may be right about Ferrari.

There are so many talented drivers at the moment, we are totally spoilt - this talk of a so-called 'Golden Age' is definitely not over-egging it - it's an amazing time for the sport at the moment. It's perfectly possible, if not likely, that there will be an eighth different winner in two weeks time.

[The Deadly]

Perez is on the Ferrari young driver program so he is being groomed for it.

[MK Chris]

Indeed, which is why you are probably right. I'd still rather see him somewhere else - not least because I like him and I don't like them! Mind you, I like Massa, but like you I'll be astonished if he's still there next season... he could yet be replaced before the season is out.

[The Deadly]

I don't think there is anywhere else for him to go to be honest. Mercedes will only use German drivers so I'd expect Vettel to go to them and Red Bull will probably take Di Resta from Force India.