Postpublished at 16:14 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
Good start by Sebastian Vettel, Valtteri Bottas jumps past Kimi Raikkonen into second.
Summary
Vettel holds on to win, Bottas 2nd, Hamilton up to 3rd from 9th
Raikkonen runs over mechanic in pits - breaking his leg
Hamilton overtakes three cars in one corner
Both Red Bulls out early on
Ricciardo, Verstappen, Raikkonen out
Postpublished at 16:14 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
Go! Go! Go!published at 16:13 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
Lights out!
'A bit sandy'published at 16:13 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
Jolyon Palmer
Former Renault driver on BBC Radio 5 live sports extraIt is always a bit dirty, bit sandy, to get off the line here.
get involved Get Involvedpublished at 16:12 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
#bbcf1
DT: Love the Bahrain Grand Prix, let’s go!! Hope Kimi does some damage today.
Rashida: I've been ruining F1 for my friend but today I might let them find out for himself when Hamilton clinches it from Vettel in dramatic style!
Hamilton team radiopublished at 16:11 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
Hamilton's race engineer: Valtteri is staying with his balance. The cars are very similar.
Hamilton: How is the temperature?
Race engineer: 33, same as FP2.
'Stunning'published at 16:11 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
We are ready for the formation lap. Sebastian Vettel leads them all out under the floodlights of Bahrain, which looks pretty spectacular.
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End of twitter postThe bottom 10published at 16:10 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
A lot of work to do for this lot...
Ricciardo the wildcard?published at 16:09 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
Jolyon Palmer
Former Renault driver on BBC Radio 5 live sports extraI think the wildcard in this race could well be Ricciardo. He had good pace in Australia, did a lot of hassling. He starts fourth and could be a danger.
The top 10published at 16:09 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
This is how they start in Bahrain.
More Hamilton historypublished at 16:07 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
Lewis Hamilton will make more history just by starting this race.
It will be his 100th for Mercedes, making him the first driver to reach 100 starts for two different teams - he made 110 starts for McLaren between 2007-12.
This is how his time at Mercedes compares with those years at McLaren.
Image source, .'Nothing is certain in F1'published at 16:06 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
Jolyon Palmer
Former Renault driver on BBC Radio 5 live sports extraThe Ferraris did the perfect job yesterday. It is in their hands but this time two weeks ago it was in Lewis Hamilton's hands and that didn't work out for him. Nothing is certain in F1.
'Nothing comes easy'published at 16:06 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
Some pre-race optimism for Williams.
Did you know?published at 16:05 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
Fernando Alonso’s fifth place in Australia equalled McLaren’s best result in the previous three years with Honda.
If they fail to win at Sakhir, which, let's face it, is highly likely, it will be the first time in their history they have gone 100 races without victory.
Their last triumph came in the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix, courtesy of Jenson Button.
Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Fernando Alonso, then of Ferrari, was second when Jenson Button won in Brazil in November 2012 - McLaren's last win
Postpublished at 16:05 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
A good day in qualifying for Haas. They promised so much last time around, but it ended in disappointment after some pitstop blunders. Will it be a better day for them today?
It is nearly time...published at 16:01 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
Live commentarypublished at 16:00 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
BBC Radio 5 live sports extraThe pitlane is open. Tune into BBC Radio 5 live sports extra or listen online to live build up to the race right now.
Press the play button at the top to listen along to Jack Nicholls and Jolyon Palmer.
Image source, RenaultPostpublished at 15:57 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
What Grand Prix would be complete without a marching band? A musical start to proceedings in Bahrain as the national anthem is played.
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End of twitter postWho will Snatch victory?published at 15:56 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
Film director Guy Ritchie is among the celebrities getting a close up of the cars before lights out.
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A joint record for Lewis?published at 15:56 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
Lewis Hamilton may well be starting in ninth, but if he finishes in the top 10 then he will equal Kimi Raikkonen's all-time record of 27 consecutive races where he will have earned points.
Raikkonen's record was set during 2012 and 2013 with Lotus, while Hamilton has finished in the points in each of the past 26 grands prix.
The last time he failed to earn any points was when he was leading in Malaysia in October 2016 and suffered an engine failure, in a year where then team-mate Nico Rosberg would go on to win the world title by five points.
Image source, .Celeb spot!published at 15:53 British Summer Time 8 April 2018
Jockey Frankie Dettori is having a wander on the grid. Got to be cheering on Ferrari today, surely?
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