Blundell's view: Bahrain Grand Prix.

Hi folks...

We don't have long to catch our breath as, no sooner have we had the Malaysian Grand Prix, than we are off to Bahrain for the third round in the championship.

Back-to-backs events are always difficult for the teams but, at least, once this one is out of the way, things will get a tad easier, as we are back to Europe, where the season will begin 'proper' next month, with the Spanish Grand Prix at Barcelona.

Before that, though, we have the final fly-away - at least until June - and the Bahrain International Circuit itself is a great facility. It is, of course, another one of these new venues, but with the first grand prix having taken place there back in 2004, this will be the fourth time the circus has made the stop and, as such, it is becoming more and more of a known quantity.

At first, there was some concern that the sand would be a problem, but now that is less of a worry and, while it does affect tyre wear and so on, most of the teams will have a head-start prior to practice on Friday, as they did some testing here back in February.

Then, it was Ferrari that led the way and, while that was the case in Australia too, it wasn't the way things turned out last weekend at Sepang. Indeed, there was a bit of a shift there and that can only be good as we don't want one team running away with it. Not that it looked likely, contrary to some reports.

So far, it appears as if the battle between Ferrari and McLaren will be very close all year long and, the way things are shaping up, the fight between their lead drivers, Kimi Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso, should also be just as close.

How it will go this weekend is anyone's guess, but I think, on balance, it is safe to say that McLaren probably won't have it so easy. Indeed, it may all come down to who starts at the front and who gets away in the lead at the start. That was certainly the key moment in Malaysia and Fernando and Lewis Hamilton both made the best of it.

It was another sweet result for Ron Dennis, especially when you consider his team didn't win at all in 2006. It also put Alonso top in the drivers' championship and, while it is early days, the Spaniard will obviously be thanking his lucky stars he is no longer with Renault, who continue to struggle.

Hamilton's performance also showed again - if it was needed - that he was more than ready to step up to F1 this year. I have to admit to having had some concerns before the season about him coming straight in and partnering Alonso, but he has definitely shown I had no cause to worry.

Of course, it is early days. We have only had two races, but a third place in Melbourne and now a second place in Sepang, after lots of pressure from Felipe Massa and Raikkonen, has more than proven his abilities at the pinnacle of the sport. As long as he keeps his feet on the ground - and I am sure he will - he will continue to improve and, with every grand prix he does, he should get better and better.

As for Felipe Massa, his mistake while trying to challenge Lewis was, in the end, very costly. It certainly cost him third place and I just hope he can get a good result on Sunday to keep his confidence up.

He has had a tough start and, while Ferrari insists there is no number one or number two driver, if he doesn't turn things around, he will have to play a supporting role to Raikkonen. Thus far, Kimi has scored 16 points, while Felipe only has seven and, while that might be misleading because there is certainly not that much between them, you can't deny it is quite a difference already.

What can we say about the rest?

Well, BMW Sauber maintained their position as 'third' best, with Nick Heidfeld again bringing his F1.07 home in fourth. It was a shame, for them, that Robert Kubica didn't do so well in the sister car, but that's the way it goes sometimes. BMW won't run a third driver in practice in Bahrain - as Sebastien Vettel and Timo Glock are both racing, but it will be interesting to see if that is something that they revert to in Barcelona. Neither race driver has been too pleased at sitting out a session on Friday.

Behind the top three, it was a three-way fight for the remaining points positions between Renault duo Giancarlo Fisichella and Heikki Kovalainen, Toyota's Jarno Trulli and Williams' Nico Rosberg.

Rosberg, of course, didn't finish and retired while running sixth, but the fact that Alex Wurz was ninth in the sister car, despite starting 19th courtesy of gearbox issues, suggests that the Grove team definitely has the pace. The FW29 just needs to be a bit more reliable and, once that is done, things should fall in to place a bit more.

Why Renault is down here though must be tough for the team to accept. They have lost a lot of ground over the winter and it would be interesting to see what Alonso could do with that car. We will never know, of course, but it won't stop people from speculating. All I would point out is that F1 is a team sport and, while one person can be important, there is a lot more to it than that. It is often said that package is what is important and, clearly, Renault need to do some work here.

One thing that was good for them was that Kovalainen scored his first points and, after a difficult debut in Australia, that has to be positive for him and the team. Fisichella was solid too and, considering they only lined up eleventh and twelfth, to finish sixth and eighth in the race wasn't too bad at all.

There's really not much to say about the rest, although Mark Webber was solid for Red Bull. Tenth in qualifying and tenth in the race gives them something to build on, but I think it is already pretty safe to say don't expect any miracles from them this season.

The Honda F1 team were still pretty tragic - and talk of them building a new car for mid-season shows just how bad the RA107 is. They were reliable, which was something, but I can't think they will take much consolation from finishing eleventh and twelfth, especially as Jenson Button was battling with 'B' team member, Takuma Sato. Dark days.

As for the minnows - Super Aguri, Toro Rosso and Spyker - the first two both got their cars home and that will help them. Considering how little running they had prior to the new season that is definitely a boost.

Spyker, unfortunately, didn't manage that feat and both of their cars went out early on, so it is unclear whether or not the changes they introduced for the weekend had much effect. All you can say is that it didn't seem to do much for qualifying.

So, to sum up, don't expect any changes in the pecking order this time out. It's going to be another Alonso-Raikkonen affair and, the way it is looking, that will be the pattern for the year as a whole.

Enjoy the race...

MB