F1 teams and drivers start arriving in Bahrain

Formula 1 drivers and team members have begun arriving in the Kingdom ahead of this weekend’s Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix.
Sauber ace Sergio Perez and Williams Talent Bruno Senna were the first two Formula One drivers to touch down in the country.
The rest of the competitors that will make up the 24-car Grand Prix grid at Bahrain International Circuit on Sunday (April 22) are scheduled to reach Bahrain either Wednesday or Thursday (April 18 and 19).
Meanwhile, Red Bull Racing test driver and former Toro Rosso front man Sebastien Buemi was another to arrive in the Kingdom, as was Lotus F1 tester and former Virgin driver Jerome d’Ambrosio.
Formula One’s drivers will first be getting into the car on Friday for their first and second practice sessions of the weekend.
Scores of other Formula One team officials have also reached Bahrain, including McLaren Team Principal Martin Whitmarsh.
Formula One Management (FOM) staff has also arrived as well as International Automobile Federation (FIA) personnel and others from the two international racing series supporting Formula One this weekend – the GP2 Series and the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup.
All were received upon touching down into the country by Bahrain International Circuit’s (BIC) Meet and Greet staff, along with BIC Administration Director Abdulrahman Qarata. They ensured that all the necessary arrival formalities were taken care of for the Kingdom’s guests, who were then taken to their respective hotels.
Many have also already begun with their on-site preparations at the BIC premises in Sakhir. The countdown to the region’s biggest sporting and social occasion this year now reaches its final two days.