Join us behind the scenes of Formula 1: our reporters were present at every Grand Prix in 2025, including in Bahrain. We write about our experiences not only online but also in our magazine. Part 4 of 24: Frank Woestenburg on the experience at the Bahrain GP.
Do they have a thing for racing in Bahrain? On public roads, they certainly do. On my daily route from the hotel in the capital, Manama, to the circuit and back, I see plenty of drivers performing the craziest and most dangerous stunts. “If you no longer go for a gap that exists, you are no longer a racing driver,” Ayrton Senna once said. His words are echoed daily in the sandbox that is Bahrain.
One of the strangest incidents I saw was on a Thursday. Someone parked their car on the hard shoulder of the highway, a passenger got out and then, risking their own life and with an impressive sprint, crossed both sides of the highway. It must have been the shortest way home…
Tent
Near the paddock on the circuit, there’s a large tent with a new slogan on the roof: “The desert never sleeps“, or in other words, the desert never sleeps. Well, that’s true. In Saudi Arabia, it’s strictly forbidden to consume alcohol, but in neighboring Bahrain, they tend to turn a blind eye. So, the Saudis come over in droves in the evenings and especially towards the weekend, honking their horns deep into the night as they race through the streets of Manama in search of bars and other entertainment.
Things are much quieter on the circuit. That’s understandable, with temperatures heading towards forty degrees. There are visitors lying in the shade on mats, puffing on a hookah. The battles on the track pass them by. Do the inhabitants of Bahrain really have a thing for motor sports? To ask the question is to answer it.
