For all of us who got seats to watch the 19 April race, we got to see a dramatic and unforgettable event. Louis Hamilton winning, despite his breaks failing in the final lap. The same misfortune happened to Hamilton’s Mercedes teammate, Nico Rosberg, forcing him into third place. Despite Rosberg waging a brave and energetic race, his brake troubles allowed Kimi Raikkonen to swoop in and gain second place.
Once again, the night race formula created a stunning atmosphere for the racing and the Bahrain International Circuit triumphed in putting on a flawless and spectacular event. The entertainment in the days leading up to the event added a whole new dimension to the Formula One festivities and there was plenty to do and see for families and other race-goers.
Maybe the best thing about the 2015 Grand Prix was that nobody was distracted from the events themselves by the antics of the opposition. A few militants were out in their villages on Friday burning tyres, but the opposition were all but invisible, in what has previously been their most important week of the year for spreading their propaganda. Even the usual suspects from the international media completely ignored them – confirming the opposition’s complete irrelevance, having withdrawn themselves completely from the political process.
Crown Prince Salman Bin-Hamad Al Khalifa was on hand to pass out the trophies to the winners and he stressed the economic and cultural benefits that the Formula One brings to our nation.
Hotels and Bahrain’s hospitality were doing a roaring trade as tens of thousands of people enjoyed a long weekend savouring Bahrain’s welcoming atmosphere. The events will have brought in tens of millions of dollars to our economy and for a whole weekend Bahrain was a global top news story for all the best reasons. We can all be very pleased with ourselves.
The challenge now will be starting work to make 2016’s Grand Prix even bigger and better. We know Bahrain is up to the challenge.