The fourth race of the 2015 Formula One season is officially in the books and that means it is time to update the 2015 ASN F1 driver rankings as well as dole out the awards for the Bahrain Grand Prix. A small addition has also been made as we correct an oversight and establish an additional award, the Kimi Raikkonen “Leave Me Alone! I Know What I’m Doing!” Award for best display of in-race radio chatter for every race. Since we have instituted this award late, we have went ahead and included the winners of that award for the previous three races.
On to the 2015 Bahrain Grand Prix where, as far as the race action went, current season leader Lewis Hamilton had a mostly easy time of it, only having a small bit of worry at the end while his teammate, Nico Rosberg, had to fight off both Ferrari boys – Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen – unsuccessfully, in the case of Raikkonen.
For the award distribution, Pastor Maldonado once again called his own number, Rosberg snagged the newly-instituted Raikkonen award and Formula One chief crusty barnacle, Bernie Ecclestone seized the Hamilton award.
The Bahrain driver and award winners along with the updated season standings are listed below.
The 2015 Formula One season continues with the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona at 5 a.m. [PDT] on NBCSN on May 10, 2015.
2015 ASN Australian Grand Prix Kimi Raikkonen “Leave Me Alone, I Know What I’m Doing!” Award:
Daniel Ricciardo’s pit crew tells him he’s faster than Sauber’s Felipe Nasr and therefore, “Let’s Have Him.” – temporarily forgetting, of course, that they are burdened with a Renault engine. Ricciardo finishes sixth behind Nasr.
2015 ASN Malaysian Grand Prix Kimi Raikkonen Award:
Hamilton does his best Raikkonen impression with a warning to his crew – “Don’t try and talk to me through the corners, man.”
2015 ASN Chinese Grand Prix Kimi Raikkonen Award:
A third of the way into the race, Rosberg is two seconds behind his Mercedes teammate Hamilton when a pit crew member decides to let him know that very fact, to which Rosberg replies: “Stop the communication. I can see Lewis, you don’t have to tell me!”
2015 ASN Bahrain Grand Prix Winners
1] Kimi Raikkonen
2] Valtteri Bottas – for successfully holding off a mistake-prone yet charging Vettel for 4th
3] Lewis Hamilton
Pastor Maldonado Driving School Award winner: Maldonado once again claims his own prize by first lining up in the wrong spot on the grid – taking Jenson Button’s spot two slots back after Button was a DNS – and incurring a subsequent five-second penalty, then racking up two wide turns on the first lap, hitting Felipe Massa on Lap 21 before finally skidding into pit lane on Lap 42 and cooking his brakes bad enough to set him back to a final position of 15th – only good enough to beat the lowly Manor parade cars.
Kimi Raikkonen Leave Me Alone, I Know What I’m Doing Award winner: Rosberg takes the season lead with his admonishment of a pit crew member who had the audacity to inform him that Raikkonen was closing fast in the final laps – “Don’t tell me the gap anymore!”
Lewis Hamilton Doofus Moment Award winner: With Hamilton on his best behavior and talking nice to Jackie Stewart and not spraying champagne on any Bahraini babes, the award this week goes to F1 chief crusty barnacle, Bernie Ecclestone, who, after the race was upset with the teams for not moving fast enough to agree to make engine rule changes and called them out publicly like a father might with a teenage son – “It’s no good talking to these people. They will have to be told.”
2015 ASN F1 Drivers’ Season Standings [after Bahrain]
1] Hamilton – seven points
2] Vettel – seven points
3] Raikkonen – four points
4] Bottas – two points
5] Verstappen – two points
6] Button & Grosjean – one point
Maldonado Award – Maldonado leads with two points followed by a two-way tie for second between Ericsson and Raikkonen’s pit crew.
Raikkonen Award – Rosberg leads here with two points, followed by another two-way tie for second between Hamilton and Ricciardo’s pit crew.
Hamilton Award – Hamilton still leads his own award, taking two out of the first four races with Bernie and Vettel tied for second.