Formula 1: Hamilton snatches victory from the jaws of defeat!

Thanks to poor planning, I missed NBCSN’s coverage of qualifying for the Bahrain GP. I learn rather quickly so I redoubled the effort level and I was appropriately placed before my non-flat-screen TV a few ticks after 9am and prepared to absorb the gratifying spectacle.

So imagine my horror when my cable provider informed me at 9am that SPORTSMAX had bought the rights to the EPL so I would not be allowed to indulge in my innocuous pleasure.I was not amused, so I contacted my cable provider – the one that behaves like water – and informed the Customer Service Rep. that the EPL game ended long ago and as such my living room should be immersed in images of opulence from Bahrain. She informed me that my distress would be addressed in a few minutes, so, like a doctor, I was compelled to embrace my patience!

Mercedes AMG

I did not have a lengthy wait and the images appeared, as if by design, while the machines were in the final stages of the warm up lap. Mercedes AMG has been merciless thus far and like Chris Gayle on a good day, Mercedes was hitting everything the opposition threw at them beyond the outer perimeter of the 5.412 km track in Bahrain! Rosberg was on pole and Lewis was poised to pounce in second.

Lewis Hamilton has he attitude of a voracious lion and as expected, when the red lights disappeared, he attacked Rosberg. Hamilton exited corner 1 – P1!

Individuals, for a wide variety of reasons, complain about the quality of racing which F1 offers. The comments usually avoid compliments, but Sunday’s race flung a massive wrench into the agenda of F1 detractors. Battles were being fought everywhere – within teams, between teams and if that was not enough, drivers and teams were also fighting the usual suspects – tires, fuel and track conditions!

Force India

Force India and Williams indicated that they were committed to fighting in 2014, McLaren when the race came to an end, was searching for reliability answers, Ricciardo was a thorn in Vettel’s sole and Ferrari’s head-honcho, Luca, left the building, disgusted with Ferrari’s lack of pace.

Mercedes was too hot to handle on the day and Hamilton was the Punisher. Rosberg was handed a small window of opportunity when the safety car emerged, with a handful of laps remaining- thanks to a Maldonado moment.

Rosberg, ‘rocking’ the ‘faster’ tires, should have mutilated Hamilton when the safety car departed, but resolve and resilience are meals which Hamilton consume on a daily basis. He would not yield and according to the commentator, the fans in Bahrain were loving the battle!

Hamilton held his nerve and his spot and like Spartacus, he snatched victory from the jaws of defeat! With the victory, Hamilton inches closer to Rosberg who leads the championship. They are separated by 11 points!

Incidentally, Force India appeared out of nowhere – Sergio Perez clinched 3rd! Defending World Champion,Vettel, spent more time complaining than racing. His teammate,Ricciardo, remained focused throughout, disposed of the obstacles as they arose and narrowly missed out on a podium spot – he drove to 4th while Vettel hid and grabbed 6th.

This will be an interesting season. This is Hamilton’s second consecutive victory. The win streak has officially began!

Cecil Munroe Gleaner On-Line Writer