Leclerc wins Bahrain opener in Ferrari one-two, Verstappen fails to finish

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Charles Leclerc won Formula One’s season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix in a Ferrari one-two finish with teammate Carlos Sainz on Sunday.

Starting the 2022 season in the best way possible. No words to describe this ❤️#essereFerrari ? #BahrainGP pic.twitter.com/7Uqks2NmJk

— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) March 20, 2022

Mercedes’ seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton took a surprise third place after a nightmare for Red Bull and reigning champion Max Verstappen who failed to score.

Ferrari’s last win before Sunday was with Sebastian Vettel in Singapore in September 2019.

Red Bull’s race came undone at the very end.

Verstappen was set for a second-place finish, but with a few laps to the end, he had to pit his car with a technical issue.

His teammate Sergio Perez suffered the same fate on track a few laps later, gifting Hamilton a podium after a dismal race for the Mercedes team who struggled for pace.