Hamilton wins after tense battle with Verstappen
Verstappen forced to hand lead back to Hamilton after off-track pass
Mazepin crashes out on first lap, Alonso out
Get involved: #bbcf1
But now it's Verstappen's turn to dive into the pits. This could be the race here. Sixteen laps to go to the end. Verstappen comes back out nine seconds behind Hamilton, who is going to have to some expert nursing of his tyres to see this one through.
Hamilton one, Verstappen two. Sixteen laps for that to change.
Some pitstop movement at Red Bull, but it's not for Max Verstappen, it's for Sergio Perez and when he is released goes wheel to wheel with Lance Stroll.
Mercedes: 'Lewis, we are getting warnings about track limits at Turn Four, so just tidy that up."
Hamilton: "There was no track limits?!"
Mercedes: "Yeah copy that Lewis but we're getting the messages from race control."
Hamilton: "I've been doing the same thing all race. Xxxx"
Mercedes: "Yeah, they're getting a bit bumpy about it now."
Are we going to see a much-improved Ferrari in 2021 after a horror show in 2020. Sainz and Leclerc are sixth and seventh. Decent.
That's some recovery from Sergio Perez. We weren't sure if he would start the race after his car failed on the formation lap. Luckily he got it going, but had to start from the pits and is in with a shout of a podium, at the circuit where he won the Sakhir Grand Prix late last year.
Jolyon Palmer
Former Renault driver on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra
It is going to be a fight on the track at this rate for the win and between Verstappen and Hamilton, this is what we wanted to see for so long and they do seem so evenly matched. It has been swinging either way for the whole race.
Verstappen: "If my pace is good then just keep me out."
Red Bull: "Understood Max."
By the way, George Russell, who has never finished in the points in the Williams (but picked up three in his solitary effort in the Mercedes at the Sakhir Grand Prix last year) is 10th, but needs to stop again soon.
#bbcf1
Steph: Did Alonso bring his deck chair with him?
David Williams: The boy named TSU looks like he’s got a lot to offer in his rookie season!
Are we set up for some tyre drama in the last few laps, British GP of 2020 sort of drama, when Hamilton crossed the line to win with three inflated tyres?
Mercedes: "We'll increase that target lap time now. Low 34s."
Hamilton: "If I do that, I'm not going to make it to the end."
Fernando Alonso is out of the car and confirmation that he is the second to fall, after Nikita Mazepin went into a wall on the second turn of the race.
"Alpine: "We might have lost the rear brakes now. Box this lap now."
Alonso: "Ok, box, box."
#bbcf1
Jeremiah: What a disaster for Bottas! Slowest Pitstop. Some people will be the fly on the wall in the Mercedes back room!
Anime: Yet another horrid stop for Bottas at Sakhir :/
Cactus Jack: Mercedes given Bottas the Ferrari Kimi strategy and the pit stop too.
Jennie Gow
BBC Radio 5 live pit-lane reporter
A note on that Bottas stop, they actually released him and dropped him down, which is quite unusual for them to do. They had to then put him back on the stands to get back at that front-right tyre. A real mish-mash and another pit stop problem for Mercedes.
Red Bull: "Max, Lewis and Valtteri are using the exit at Turn Four. Feel free to do this until we are told not to."
Verstappen: "Yeah how is that legal, man? The whole weekend we couldn't do it!"
Brakes issue.
Nooooooooooo.
He makes it into the pits and that's his race over.
Verstappen, on the mediums, is 18.9 seconds ahead of Hamilton on the hards.
Twenty-three laps to go. Lando Norris, on course for a third-place finish at the first race of the season, just as he did in 2020, is 32 seconds off the top.
Jolyon Palmer
Former Renault driver on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra
Wonderful news for Red Bull [with the scrappy Bottas stop]. Mercedes were using Bottas as a tactical pawn to try and get Verstappen to pit and limit his tyre advantage at the end of the race.