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The Bahrain Grand Prix will be special for Mick Schumacher.
The 22-year-old will make his racing debut in the premier class in Sakhir on Sunday.
A special stroke of fate, because the 2004 Bahrain premiere was won by his father Michael.
“There will be an emotional moment for sure.
But definitely not in the warm-up lap or right before the start, ”assured Mick Schumacher in advance.
At the latest when he puts on the helmet, everything revolves around the race.
Schumacher is undoubtedly the most prominent driver who will celebrate his racing premiere in Bahrain (5 p.m. CEST / Sky).
Nikita Masepin, who is the same age, competes with him in the Haas team.
Last season they were opponents in Formula 2, which Schumacher won.
The Russian has often made a name for himself through negative headlines, father Dimitri is a billionaire and co-sponsor of the racing team.
Team boss Günther Steiner recently described the two debutants as "extremely different in character".
In an interview with the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” he also confirmed that his drivers were “not great friends”.
“You certainly don't go out together in the evening.
They don't even have to, ”said Steiner.
All eyes are on him: Mick Schumacher before the opening race in Bahrain
Source: dpa / Dan Istitene
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Masepin is more spirited and knows exactly what he wants.
"Mick thinks about things a lot more.
He analyzes things.
And he's also much more modest. ”Of course, Schumacher also competes in order to compete for the title at some point.
Hamilton on the hunt for a record
Where Schumacher jr.
Lewis Hamilton has been driving for many years.
Even the unusual one-year contract should not stop the Briton on his way to becoming the sole record world champion.
Seven titles, 95 race wins, 98 pole positions - and even at the opening race in the Sakhir desert, Hamilton can break another record from Michael Schumacher.
According to the Formula 1 statisticians, the Mercedes driver is still missing 13 laps on the German's 5111 leading laps.
Three-digit values for victories and first starting positions are no longer a long way off on this year's world tour despite the corona pandemic.
The problems with the test drives two weeks before the start of the season seem to have only spurred the team around Hamilton and racing team boss Toto Wolff even more.
The mind games for the crown are already in full swing before the start in the small kingdom of Bahrain.
“Is it going to be a tight season?
I would say: yes, ”emphasized Mercedes chief strategist James Vowles.
Max Verstappen countered immediately: "Mercedes wants people to think we are the favorites so that they can put pressure on us."
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In any case, Wolff sees his team under pressure.
For test drives, it is always true that you don't exactly know the real performance, emphasized the Mercedes team boss, “one thing is certain, however, that we now have to prove our ability to react.” Immediately after the end of the test, “we put our heads together and started to think about how we can return to Bahrain stronger in a few days, ”said the 49-year-old.
Who is the favorite?
So for Mercedes, Red Bull is the favorite, for Red Bull it remains Mercedes.
The fact is: the Austrian challenger delivered promising test laps.
Not Mercedes.
Nonetheless, the world championship team is known for solving problems quickly.
Hamilton, who has already won four times in Bahrain, is the favorite in the race, just as he starts out as the hottest contender for the title.
Whether the engineers of the world championship team, which has won all titles in the drivers 'and constructors' championships since 2014, have found solutions, will be indicated in Friday training and will be shown in the qualification on Saturday and the race on Sunday at the latest.
Hamilton in the eyes of the Red Bull drivers
Source: dpa / James Gasperotti
It is more likely that Mercedes’s renewed team title plans could be endangered by Red Bull’s access to Sergio Pérez.
Together with Verstappen, the strengthened Red Bull duo can strategically and tactically put the Silver Arrows under more pressure in the race. Last season, Verstappen lacked an adequate competitor in Alexander Albon.
The field behind the two top teams could move even closer together in 2021.
McLaren, Alpine as the successor to Renault, Aston Martin, plus Alpha Tauri and Ferrari cavort in the midfield.
Behind are Alfa Romeo, Williams and Haas.
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By the way, almost all the world champions of the past decade and a half would have started again in the desert race, which was particularly demanding in terms of climate.
Hamilton (seven titles), Sebastian Vettel (four), Kimi Räikkönen (one) and returnees Fernando Alonso (two) are there.
Only the champions from 2009, Jenson Button, and 2016, Nico Rosberg, are missing.
By the way, Vettel's new company car is a Bond girl.
The 33-year-old named his Aston Martin "Honey Ryder".
"Like the first Bond girl," said Vettel on Thursday in the paddock.
The role comes from the 007 classic "James Bond is chasing Dr.
No. “, played by Ursula Andress.
New TV contract for Formula 1
Instead, ex-world champion Rosberg analyzes six races for Sky as an expert.
The pay TV broadcaster had outbid RTL in rights poker and secured the exclusive rights for Germany.
Four races have to run in this country despite the change in rights on free-to-air television - this is what Sky's contract with Formula 1 provides.
The media company from Unterföhring could have used the in-house channel Sky Sport News for this, but opted for a sub-license for RTL.
That brings money into the cash register and, as station boss Devesh Raj recently explained, should be advertising for its own offer.
Because even if the best times are long gone, Formula 1 has a relatively loyal fan base.
The annual average on RTL last season was 3.99 million viewers, with the parallel Sky broadcasts it was around 550,000.
There will also be spectators at the Bahrain International Circuit.
However, the tickets are subject to conditions: Only those who have either been vaccinated against the coronavirus or have recovered from an infection with Sars-CoV-2 can enter.
A corresponding note in green on a Bahrain-Corona app serves as evidence.
The season opener should actually have taken place two weeks earlier.
The Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne - traditionally the start of the World Cup in recent years - had to be postponed due to the pandemic and should now take place in November.
But there should also be ghost races again.
It remains to be seen whether the calendar will stay the way it was subsequently tied down.
It is also possible that Schumacher will get another home race in Germany.