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Toto Wolff clasped his hands over his head.

In the end it was unusually tight for the Mercedes team boss.

On increasingly bad tires, Lewis Hamilton fought against Max Verstappen's attacks.

In the last five laps of the Bahrain Grand Prix, the Red Bull pulled up to the Mercedes meter by meter.

With three laps to go, Verstappen even flew past Hamilton.

But then Verstappen slowed down and paved the way for his competitor to win the season opener.

Hamilton, who impressively demonstrated his brilliance in the final meters of the Grand Prix, won ahead of Red Bull and team-mate Valtteri Bottas.

It was his first success at the start of the season in five years.

Formula 1 hasn't had that much excitement for a long time.

This and Mick Schumacher's debut in the premier class make people look forward to the season.

“Oh my, that was a difficult race.

We knew it was going to be tough.

Especially in the last third we had to find the right balance.

But in the end I was able to keep Max behind me, ”said Hamilton, relieved.

Max Verstappen (left) and Lewis Hamilton fought a gripping duel in the closing stages of Bahrain.

In the end, it was a brake that decided the race

Source: AFP / ANDREJ ISAKOVIC

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His rival remained emphatically optimistic after the race: “It's a shame, but we have to see the positive.

We could fight with Mercedes.

It's a great start to the season.

I don't know exactly what the problem was.

But in the end we were able to finish the race and collect points. "

Chaos at the start in Bahrain

The start of the new season was just as restless as the flags waving in the desert wind around the track in Sakhir.

The confusion of Bahrain started with Sergio Perez, who stopped on the penultimate corner of the opening lap.

The result was an additional preparation round, and Perez finally started out of the pits.

At the start, Verstappen fended off Hamilton's attack.

Chased by the two Mercedes, the highly traded Dutchman struggled with technical difficulties.

“It feels a bit strange,” the 23-year-old radioed to his engineers.

Apparently, Verstappen had problems with the differential, but drove on for the time being.

Lewis Hamilton won an opening race for the first time in five years

Source: Getty Images

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Mick Schumacher won the first duel after the second corner in his first race in Formula 1.

His team mate Nikita Masepin rushed over the gravel trap into the guardrail after the start.

The 22-year-old Russian debutante had lost control of his Haas after driving over the curbs on the desert course.

Masepin hit the wall with the side of the car, but was unharmed.

The safety car had to go.

“I'm ok,” radioed the debutant.

A driving mistake that Schumacher made shortly after the restart.

The son of record world champion Michael Schumacher slipped into the gravel trap after a spin.

Schumacher drove around three seconds slower than the leaders in the defeated Haas.

"Mick is clearly beaten, but we knew that beforehand.

He will primarily study this year, ”said Uncle Ralf Schumacher, who commented on the race for Sky.

Despite the last place, the race was a success for Schumacher.

"I'm getting a lot of positive out of the race," said Schumacher.

He learned a lot and had a lot of fun: “I'm happy that I was able to finish the race.

I'm already looking forward to the next weekend. "

Red Bull and Mercedes equal

Hamilton was now in the lead, followed by Verstappen and his team-mate Bottas.

Halfway through the race, the Red Bull driver kept up, but was unable to press Hamilton seriously during this phase.

Of the problems with the test drives in the same place three weeks before the start of the season, there was little to be seen at the Mercedes.

Many observers had already classified Red Bull as a World Cup favorite before the start.

It could at least be a more exciting World Cup than in previous years.

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Especially when Mercedes makes mistakes.

Because while Schumacher saw the first blue flag of his Formula 1 career and was lapped by Verstappen, Mercedes failed across the board at Bottas 'second pit stop: The Finn stood between the crew of the constructors' world champion for 10.9 seconds, a major setback for his race.

Vettel after his crash with Ocon

Source: AP / Kamran Jebreili

After his last pit stop, Verstappen came back on track a good eight seconds behind Hamilton.

The Red Bull driver had 16 laps left on fresh tires to catch up with the Briton.

Sebastian Vettel rounded off his unsuccessful opening weekend with the new team with an unnecessary collision with Esteban Ocon.

The accident caused by the Heppenheimer was checked by the stewarts, initially he crossed the finish line in 15th place.

Schumacher finished last in his first race.

Mick Schumacher wants to draw “a lot of positive things” from the race, he has “learned a lot, had a lot of fun.

I'm already looking forward to the next weekend. "

Mick Schumacher was happy with his Formula 1 debut

Source: Getty Images / Mark Thompson

At the top, Verstappen caught up with Hamilton for a few seconds, but then made the decisive mistake in the dramatic duel for victory. After all, the Dutchman still held Bottas behind in the second Mercedes. A respectable success for Red Bull, a warning for Mercedes. The defense of the title will probably not be another drive for the Swabians this year.