Ferrari's Leclerc, Sainz finish 1-2 at dramatic Bahrain GP

The opening race of the 2022 Formula 1 season belonged to Ferrari.

Charles Leclerc secured first place at the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday ahead of teammate Carlos Sainz and Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton, who finished second and third, respectively.

Leclerc began in pole position and led for most of the race. He seemed to have an easy victory in his grasp until a late safety car forced a sprint over the final six laps between the Ferraris, Red Bulls, and Mercedes.

Defending champion Max Verstappen stayed on Leclerc's tail for most of the race but couldn't catch the leader and ultimately exited with steering issues before finishing.

Verstappen's teammate Sergio Perez appeared to have a podium finish in his sights until he spun out on turn two of the final lap.

The win is Ferrari's first victory since 2019.

"I'm so happy," Leclerc said after the win. "We could not have hoped for better. The past two years have not been easy. It's great to be back on top."

Ferrari's results also thrilled Sainz.

"Ferrari is back," he said. "The hard work has paid off. Congratulations to Charles, and I managed to bring the 1-2 back for the team."

Kevin Magnussen returned with a bang after recently rejoining F1 to replace Nikita Mazepin at Haas. The Danish driver placed fifth, earning major points for a race team that failed to collect a single one in 2021.

Rookie driver Guanyu Zhou secured the 10th position in his debut F1 race, four positions behind Alfa Romeo teammate Valtteri Bottas.