The Bahrain Grand Prix is off to a flyer as Max Verstappen secured pole position, while defending champions, Mercedes and their drivers, Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas, could manage only P2 and P3, respectively.

Considering the Silver Arrows have been the fastest when it came to the season-openers over the past few years, this particular session may have left the fans wondering if Lewis messed up his final flying lap. Well, surprisingly, the Briton put everything out on the track to beat the flying Dutchman, but it was all in vain.

What did Lewis Hamilton say?

Following the qualifying session, the 7-time World Champion opened up that his lap time was the most his car could offer. Furthermore, he also reckoned that the team made a substantial leap in performance since the pre-season testing.

“Congratulations to Max, he did such a great job, so fast on that last lap,” he said. “Absolutely gave everything I had but unfortunately it wasn’t good enough.

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“I mean there’s always more. But it was the best that I could do, that’s for sure; I got absolutely everything I could from the car. I think we did a really good job from testing to come here, the lads back at the factory – they’ve really done such an amazing job.”

Lewis never really had the upper hand through the qualifying session as Max was looking very much in form, and that powerful Honda engine only fueled his pace.

And in the end, despite the desperate efforts, Lewis ended up over 0.3 seconds behind the Red Bull driver. And although the difference looks minuscule on paper, that still is a massive advantage on the track. Hence, it will be interesting to see how Max manages to perform on Sunday evening.

How is Sunday looking for Mercedes?

The good news for Mercedes is that they only have to face the wrath of Max for the time being. The other Red Bull, which is tamed by the new-comer Sergio Perez ended up in P11 after a gamble on Medium tires went wrong.

As of now, a win looks a bit too far-fetched for either of the Mercedes drivers. And to even hope for a victory, Mercedes will need a strong start to the race and will have to hope that they could beat Max before Turn 3.

This is because weather conditions don’t seem to play in Mercedes’ strengths. Amid the team’s struggles with the rear, the predicted windy conditions could pull them further down the grid.

Overall, it looks like the fans are in for intense racing in Bahrain tomorrow under the lights. But who is going to take the lead on the Drivers’ Championship standings by the end of the evening?